On the fence

[Buffalobills]

I have an excursion booked with Carnival on the Ultimate Yukon & White Pass RR. The excursion is 8 hours long in total however only 1 1/2 hour total train time. The rest is charter bus and lunch. I just read a recent review and they say it’s not worth it because you are on a bus for 5 1/2 hours going up. I’m thinking they have a van going up to the summit and gives local highlights for a lot less and I still have time to shop and hike.  Has anyone done any of these two in Skagway? Also is there any hiking trails that we can walk to from the port? 

 

 

 

[GTJ]

3 hours ago, Buffalobills said:

I have an excursion booked with Carnival on the Ultimate Yukon & White Pass RR. The excursion is 8 hours long in total however only 1 1/2 hour total train time. The rest is charter bus and lunch.

I read the tour description. It is misleading for Carnival to characterize this as an ultimate railroad adventure. An ultimate railroad adventure would include, at a minimum, a ride along the entire route that has passenger service. This means the trip from Carcross, departing at 1:00 p.m. Alaska time (2:00 p.m. local time), to Skagway, arriving 5:45 p.m., a near 5-hour railroad journey. Instead, this tour includes only a partial ride from Fraser. Adding insult is that the tour actually visits Carcross, but instead of dropping passengers off at the station in Carcross, it instead transports passengers to Fraser (about a one hour highway journey). Going beyond the minimum, a truly "ultimate" railroading tour would include a locomotive cab ride, or some other distinctive railroading activity. I view the tour name as being the creation of an ignorant marketing person at Carnival, looking to impress but instead showing ignorance about railroading.

[Coral]

I have done just the train RT 2x, the bus through the cruise line 2x, combination.

 

This last week - I booked through Chilkoot tours and did their 25 passenger van. The cruise line will probably use a larger bus.

 

I do like the combination tour as you see different scenery on bus than you do on the train. I think it is an excellent excursion IMO.

 

This company does combination tours also but uses vans: 

 

https://chilkootcharters.com

 

I can tell you that I did not have time to hike. The benefit of the bus/van is that you get out several times for photo stops and also at Carcross.

 

You want to go farther than the summit. The summit isn't that far. The Yukon is beautiful.

 

I have some pics from our van ride here:

 

 

[Buffalobills]

I totally agree. I’m probably going to cancel and book something in port. For the price of the excursion I should be on the train a lot longer than 1 1/2 hours.  

[Coral]

1 minute ago, Buffalobills said:

I totally agree. I’m probably going to cancel and book something in port. For the price of the excursion I should be on the train a lot longer than 1 1/2 hours.  

I just posted pics of the van ride above your post (link).

 

I like both the train and the van. They both have unique scenery - some of the paths are the same but there are areas where they are different. Click on the tour company that I put a link to. The benefit of the van is getting out and taking pictures. I do recommend the combo tour. The most popular train ride is usually 2 hours I believe and it is the same scenery both ways - thus the combo is great.

[Buffalobills]

Thank you for sharing your pictures they were beautiful. I think carnival offers a 2 hour train excursion so I’ll look into that. Emerald lake was breathtaking. I don’t go until the end of the month so I still have time to decide. Thank you! 

[Coral]

23 minutes ago, Buffalobills said:

Thank you for sharing your pictures they were beautiful. I think carnival offers a 2 hour train excursion so I’ll look into that. Emerald lake was breathtaking. I don’t go until the end of the month so I still have time to decide. Thank you! 

On the train - you will not see Emerald Lake. At least the 2 hour train ride you will not. I have never done the Bennett train ride. I don't think the train goes near Emerald Lake but the bus/van will. It is near Caribou Crossing where you have lunch.

 

Yes - you have time to look into it and decide.

 

You can also rent a car and do the trip yourself 🙂 There are some good maps out there and you can't get lost. If interested, I would reserve a car right away. They book up quickly!

Edited May 31, 2023 by Coral

[mskaufman]

I have been on the 8 hour tour.  The bus ride up travelled a different route than the train ride back.  The bus made a number of photo stops and got to Emerald Lake.  Chilkoot is less expensive.  It is incorrect if they market this as an ultimate rail adventure, but we saw a lot in the 8 hours.

[portiemom]

5 hours ago, Buffalobills said:

Also is there any hiking trails that we can walk to from the port? 

 

 

 

Yakutania Point, Upper and Lower Dewey Lake Trails.

[xlxo]

I enjoyed the Yukon train/bus combo.  I think it goes the furthest North (Cariboo crossing) compared to the other train combo's.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moNz-VKYYek

 

The summit return train return only showcases the East side of the Canyon.  The bus combo's showcases the West side of the Canyon.

[GTJ]

7 hours ago, Buffalobills said:

I totally agree. I’m probably going to cancel and book something in port. For the price of the excursion I should be on the train a lot longer than 1 1/2 hours.  

It may be that the cruise line, itself, is not going to offer any of the substantial railroad excursions. But that doesn't stop you from buying tickets tickets directly from the railroad.

 

The true "ultimate" excursion will have you on the train for nearly 10 hours. There is no pre-packaged trip for doing so, but what you would do is buy two tickets. First, a one-way railroad ticket from Skagway to Carcross, and, second, a one-way railroad ticket from Carcross to Skagway. http://www.wpyr.com/excursions/product/carcross-one-way-service This will work on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The train departs Skagway at 7:45 a.m., and arrives Carcross at 1:30 p.m. local time. The return trip departs Carcross at 2:00 p.m. local time, and arrives Skagway at 5:45 p.m. Fare is 190.00 USD each way, or 380.00 USD round-trip. Make certain that your vessel is in port at these times!

 

Alternatively, the railroad will sell a round-trip package between Skagway and Carcoss, one-way by railroad (all the way to or from Carcoss, a 5-hour trip by railroad) and the other way by bus. http://www.wpyr.com/excursions/product/bennett-scenic-journey For train first, return by bus, travel any day except Monday or Saturday, departing Skagway at 7:45 a.m., and returning at 3:45 p.m. For bus first, return by train, travel any day except Friday or Sunday, departing Skagway at 9:30 a.m., and returning at 5:45 p.m. Fare is 255.00 USD.