Ahhhhh-laska. Think I need help!

[Italy52]

Next picture

[VelvetSkeeter]

@Italy52Those are amazing pictures! Thank you for sharing. It is awesome you got to experience a great day and got so close! I think I am convinced to take the risk, not like I can see something like that in Florida! 

[Coral]

8 hours ago, VelvetSkeeter said:

@Italy52Those are amazing pictures! Thank you for sharing. It is awesome you got to experience a great day and got so close! I think I am convinced to take the risk, not like I can see something like that in Florida! 

Anytime you can get much closer to the glacier - it is definitely worth it.

 

Also - another great choice is AdventureBound Alaska to Juneau. It looks like your ship has enough time in port for it. It is a small boat ride to Tracy Arm and it is my all time favorite excursion of all times. And the price is reasonable since it is all day ($185).

 

https://www.adventureboundalaska.com 

 

This is a tour that mostly locals take or locals take their visiting friends to. My deciding factor if I went to Alaska this year was if the ship was operating when I was going (early season). I highly recommend you look into this.

Edited January 12, 2023 by Coral

[Italy52]

13 hours ago, VelvetSkeeter said:

@Italy52Those are amazing pictures! Thank you for sharing. It is awesome you got to experience a great day and got so close! I think I am convinced to take the risk, not like I can see something like that in Florida! 

Thank you for your comment about the pictures, I appreciate it.  Hope you have a memorable time at Hubbard.  We will be doing the excursion again in July and hoping for another great experience. 

I see that Coral has mentioned to you that Adventure Bound is a good choice for a Juneau excursion.  Agree with her --- there is nothing like being close to the beautiful/colorful bergs. 

[Italy52]

VelvetSkeeter:  Here are a couple of pictures from our 2012 trip on Adventure Bound --- you can see what is meant by being up close to the bergs. 

Edited January 12, 2023 by Italy52

[Italy52]

VelvetSkeeter: Here is another picture from our Adventure Bound trip:

 

 

[Glaciers]

This is the Allen Marine vessel, the St. Nicholas, in front of the North Sawyer Glacier in Tracy Arm Fjord. They are the same operator who does the Hubbard Glacier excursions from the ship.  They also do tours from Juneau like Adventure Bound.

[Coral]

Here are some Adventure Bound pictures from one of my trips:

 

[Wasasalad]

OMG!!!

Amazing photos! Thank you so much for all the information! Now this is a must do for me!

I was on the Icefields Parkway in western Canada July 2022. I went to the glacier on a vehicle that had tires taller then me! We walked up the ladder to get on the Vehicle!

I walked on the glacier! That also was amazing!

Thank you again!

[Italy52]

@Coral-- Beautiful pictures.  Did you have an overcast day when you went?  I think if we had a little more overcast our blues would have been a little darker.  The lower vantage point makes all the difference in the viewing experience --- at least that is the way we feel.

 

So, revisiting your pictures, are you ready to book yet???

[Coral]

2 minutes ago, Italy52 said:

@Coral-- Beautiful pictures.  Did you have an overcast day when you went?  I think if we had a little more overcast our blues would have been a little darker.  The lower vantage point makes all the difference in the viewing experience --- at least that is the way we feel.

 

So, revisiting your pictures, are you ready to book yet???

How is this for blue? Yes - it was overcast. This was in 2005. We had never heard of this company but saw it on an email from Orca Enterprises. It had never been written on CC previously. We figured it would be incredibly boring or one of our best days. Then the day arrived and I checked every weather forecast and it showed "rain all day" on weather.com and a few other sites. I thought we would be doomed. I met a local on the boat and said "I think it is going to rain all day". She looked at me and said "nope - not until later". I then had to tell her I looked at all these national sites and it all said rain" sounding like I knew what I was talking about. She then said "I work for National Weather Service, we are local and it won't rain until late in the day." She was right! Plus - the tour was amazing and we went back to CC and wrote all about it!

 

I did deposit the cruise, I did call AdventureBound and they are running the day we are there in May. Their calendar online starts in June but they are running in mid-May. She told me to call her later and book. She also said Tracy Arm access hasn't been blocked early in the season the past few years. I booked air with FF miles as it was super $$$ otherwise.

 

I haven't asked work for time off yet..... First week of school - crazy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[VelvetSkeeter]

@Coral  @Glaciers@Wasasalad

Awesome pics all the way around! Now I am even more excited to get on this trip after see all the stunning photos! The blue in the ice is crazy! 

Edited January 13, 2023 by VelvetSkeeter

[Italy52]

@CoralYour "blue" definitely beats mine.  Happy to hear that you are heading back to Alaska.  Looking forward to hearing all about your cruise. 

[Coral]

Just now, Italy52 said:

@CoralYour "blue" definitely beats mine.  Happy to hear that you are heading back to Alaska.  Looking forward to hearing all about your cruise. 

It has been awhile since I have been back. I feel the need.....!

[Coral]

12 minutes ago, VelvetSkeeter said:

@Coral  @Glaciers@Wasasalad

Awesome pics all the way around! Now I am even more excited to get on this trip after see all the stunning photos! The blue in the ice is crazy! 

You can do this trip with your times on the Eclipse (pics I posted and @Italy52). It is a private tour that is all day from Juneau. The price is very reasonable for an all day tour and each time I went - we did see whales and bears also.

 

https://www.adventureboundalaska.com 

Edited January 13, 2023 by Coral

[VelvetSkeeter]

8 minutes ago, Coral said:

You can do this trip with your times on the Eclipse. It is a private tour that is all day from Juneau:

 

https://www.adventureboundalaska.com 

Well, I checked out the link for the adventureboundalaska Tracy Arm Fjord along with the photos everyone posted here from Tracy Arm Fjord - which all look incredible, and would like to add my own! That tourdoes seem like it would leave memories for a lifetime with those views and landscapes, and the price is very  reasonable as well.  My only issue is that from Juneau I planned to do the Helicopter ride to the Glacier, Dog Sledding and then the extra glacier stop.  Definitely more $$$ , but seemed like the best port to do that, and I wouldn't be able to do both. So now I do need to weigh the options for Juneau.  I have no thoughts on a tour yet for the Ketchikan port, (2pm -8pm). 

Here is the tour I was planning on for Juneau - till you all threw a wrench in my plans 🙂 
https://alaskashoretours.com/excursions/juneau/helicopter-dogsledding-with-extra-landing/  

Edited January 13, 2023 by VelvetSkeeter

[Coral]

19 minutes ago, VelvetSkeeter said:

Well, I checked out the link for the adventureboundalaska Tracy Arm Fjord along with the photos everyone posted here from Tracy Arm Fjord - which all look incredible, and would like to add my own! That tourdoes seem like it would leave memories for a lifetime with those views and landscapes, and the price is very  reasonable as well.  My only issue is that from Juneau I planned to do the Helicopter ride to the Glacier, Dog Sledding and then the extra glacier stop.  Definitely more $$$ , but seemed like the best port to do that, and I wouldn't be able to do both. So now I do need to weigh the options for Juneau.  I have no thoughts on a tour yet for the Ketchikan port, (2pm -8pm). 

Here is the tour I was planning on for Juneau - till you all threw a wrench in my plans 🙂 
https://alaskashoretours.com/excursions/juneau/helicopter-dogsledding-with-extra-landing/  

People rave about that tour also! I think you will just have to go back to Alaska again 🙂

[VelvetSkeeter]

12 hours ago, Coral said:

People rave about that tour also! I think you will just have to go back to Alaska again 🙂

Yes, I can already see I will need to make another trip!

[Wasasalad]

20 hours ago, VelvetSkeeter said:

Well, I checked out the link for the adventureboundalaska Tracy Arm Fjord along with the photos everyone posted here from Tracy Arm Fjord - which all look incredible, and would like to add my own! That tourdoes seem like it would leave memories for a lifetime with those views and landscapes, and the price is very  reasonable as well.  My only issue is that from Juneau I planned to do the Helicopter ride to the Glacier, Dog Sledding and then the extra glacier stop.  Definitely more $$$ , but seemed like the best port to do that, and I wouldn't be able to do both. So now I do need to weigh the options for Juneau.  I have no thoughts on a tour yet for the Ketchikan port, (2pm -8pm). 

Here is the tour I was planning on for Juneau - till you all threw a wrench in my plans 🙂 
https://alaskashoretours.com/excursions/juneau/helicopter-dogsledding-with-extra-landing/  

Helicopter ride to the Glacier, DogSledding and then the extra glacier stop
This tour will not allow a solo booking! I sent them an email! It sounds amazing!

[Wasasalad]

34 minutes ago, Wasasalad said:

Helicopter ride to the Glacier, DogSledding and then the extra glacier stop
This tour will not allow a solo booking! I sent them an email! It sounds amazing!

They just emailed me! Yes I can book a solo

helicopter! 

So I contacted Alaska bound and they are a yes! I have to make decisions! 

So now I have problems! I’m booked 2024 Alaska with different ports from my 2023!

I might have to also do these ports again!

I go from not knowing what I want to do to realizing I have to do these ports again!

[Coral]

40 minutes ago, Wasasalad said:

They just emailed me! Yes I can book a solo

helicopter! 

So I contacted Alaska bound and they are a yes! I have to make decisions! 

So now I have problems! I’m booked 2024 Alaska with different ports from my 2023!

I might have to also do these ports again!

I go from not knowing what I want to do to realizing I have to do these ports again!

That is why some of us have done Back2Backk bookings where we go from Vancouver to Whittier or Seward and then back to Vancouver. And even though I have done several of this tours multiple times - Alaska keeps changing that it is a different experience each time. Alaska is amazing.

[Nataliea621]

1 hour ago, Coral said:

That is why some of us have done Back2Backk bookings where we go from Vancouver to Whittier or Seward and then back to Vancouver. And even though I have done several of this tours multiple times - Alaska keeps changing that it is a different experience each time. Alaska is amazing.

This is why I think that 2024 14 day one would be great! And I have almost 1.5 years to plan and save! I really want to do the Adventurebound excursion! It seems amazing!

[Coral]

16 minutes ago, Nataliea621 said:

This is why I think that 2024 14 day one would be great! And I have almost 1.5 years to plan and save! I really want to do the Adventurebound excursion! It seems amazing!

Princess sometimes has last minute sales that are really cheap. Just something to consider.

[Italy52]

3 hours ago, Coral said:

That is why some of us have done Back2Backk bookings where we go from Vancouver to Whittier or Seward and then back to Vancouver. And even though I have done several of this tours multiple times - Alaska keeps changing that it is a different experience each time. Alaska is amazing.

Agree 100%. 

[jdk4asu]

We went on our Alaska trip five years ago on Royal Caribbean out Vancouver. Biggest mistake? NOT planning enough time in Vancouver!  

 

My family and I have been to the Caribbean, Germany, Hawaii, most major cities in the US, live five miles from the beach and my kid goes to school in San Francisco. Hands down Vancouver, even if we were there for barely 24 hours to get on the ship, was one of the most beautiful, friendly and food towns we have ever been in.

 

We did get to eat two meals there that were fabulous and knocked me off my chair with the difference in price, at that time at least, then, was probably 20% less expensive then the same high quality meal we had at home. And super high quality! Sushi, shellfish, both terrific. 

 

Trust me, we have Vancouver on our bucket list to go back, even if it will be for a weekend! I would not have said anything but when you mentioned not wanting to go to Seattle, it was a slam dunk for me write this. 

 

It may have been five years ago, however since I had a sales manager that goes up there almost every month, it sounds like nothing really changed. We want to go back as there are many things you can do there, especially the food! We did stay at the Hampton Inn, which is across the street from BC Place and found it to be nearly perfect. You could walk to the Gaslamp District, find really good food within steps of waling out and the cruise shuttle took us maybe 10 minutes. At the time the front desk was great as well.

 

Hope that helps!