Royal Caribbean Alaska cruisetour questions.

[jean87510]

This may be a better question on the Alaska boards but I was hoping to get more answers here as it's related to Royal.  How soon do you get the land tour excursions and are they usually available up until the day of?  Will I get a detailed schedule with approximate times and if so, how close to the start of the trip.  We are doing the 6b tour and continuing with Seward to Vancouver in 2024 and starting to research.  

 

Please note I am not talking about the ship excursions.  I'm talking about the excursions offered by the land tour that are separate from the included tours.

[reallyitsmema]

26 minutes ago, jean87510 said:

This may be a better question on the Alaska boards but I was hoping to get more answers here as it's related to Royal.  How soon do you get the land tour excursions and are they usually available up until the day of?  Will I get a detailed schedule with approximate times and if so, how close to the start of the trip.  We are doing the 6b tour and continuing with Seward to Vancouver in 2024 and starting to research.  

 

Please note I am not talking about the ship excursions.  I'm talking about the excursions offered by the land tour that are separate from the included tours.

 

When we did our cruisetour, you did not book the optional cruisetour excursions until you met with your tour director on the first day of your cruisetour.  I did find a list of the optional excursions and had already picked out what we wanted to book ahead of time.  You can see the optional excursions in this link under the resources tab.

 

https://www.royalcaribbeancruisetours.com/

 

We did 4b and were in Denali two nights.  We did the ATV one night and the rafting the other.  We really enjoyed both.  We did the side by side ATV and that was easy to drive.  We did a Salmon bake in Fairbanks that was okay.  We should have done it with the show.  It is easy to do excursions at night because it is light out.  We got back from rafting just after 10pm.  

[cruiselvr04]

I wrote a detailed review of our Cruise tour with Royal this July if you do a search on the Alaska port of call board. It was a different one (8B) but it should give you an idea of how things worked.  I’m a planner and this is one you can not plan and that was hard for me.  Others mentioned the same on the tour.  You don’t get a schedule until you meet with your guide the first afternoon.  

[frank808]

1 hour ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

When we did our cruisetour, you did not book the optional cruisetour excursions until you met with your tour director on the first day of your cruisetour.  I did find a list of the optional excursions and had already picked out what we wanted to book ahead of time.  You can see the optional excursions in this link under the resources tab.

 

https://www.royalcaribbeancruisetours.com/

 

We did 4b and were in Denali two nights.  We did the ATV one night and the rafting the other.  We really enjoyed both.  We did the side by side ATV and that was easy to drive.  We did a Salmon bake in Fairbanks that was okay.  We should have done it with the show.  It is easy to do excursions at night because it is light out.  We got back from rafting just after 10pm.  

Did the same tours as you did in Denali. The white water rafting was awesome. Did you buy the pics they took from above the shoreline of Nenana River? I would do that again. It was well run and well worth it. If anyone is interested the name of the company is Denali Raft Adventures. They are located right in town but you need to take the resort shuttle into town from where Royal has their lodge. Fortunately the shuttle runs into town on a schedule. So you do not have to book the rafting through Royal.

 

We went the year when it was hot and all the wildfires up north in Alaska. The lodge RCL uses has no AC and it was hot. The McKinley Chalet looked very nice with AC but Princess uses it for their cruisetours. On our next Alaska trip we are doing the landside by ourselves and will be booking McKinley Chalet. Another plus is chalet overlooks the Nenana River and is in the middle of town.

[jean87510]

7 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

When we did our cruisetour, you did not book the optional cruisetour excursions until you met with your tour director on the first day of your cruisetour.  I did find a list of the optional excursions and had already picked out what we wanted to book ahead of time.  You can see the optional excursions in this link under the resources tab.

 

https://www.royalcaribbeancruisetours.com/

 

We did 4b and were in Denali two nights.  We did the ATV one night and the rafting the other.  We really enjoyed both.  We did the side by side ATV and that was easy to drive.  We did a Salmon bake in Fairbanks that was okay.  We should have done it with the show.  It is easy to do excursions at night because it is light out.  We got back from rafting just after 10pm.  

Thank you for the link!  Very helpful.

 

We will be in Denali on my actual 60th birthday so am looking at the whitewater rafting as it's something I've always wanted to do.  

[jean87510]

6 hours ago, cruiselvr04 said:

I wrote a detailed review of our Cruise tour with Royal this July if you do a search on the Alaska port of call board. It was a different one (8B) but it should give you an idea of how things worked.  I’m a planner and this is one you can not plan and that was hard for me.  Others mentioned the same on the tour.  You don’t get a schedule until you meet with your guide the first afternoon.  

Yes, I remember reading your review and it was really helpful and answered many of my questions.

[reallyitsmema]

8 hours ago, frank808 said:

Did the same tours as you did in Denali. The white water rafting was awesome. Did you buy the pics they took from above the shoreline of Nenana River? I would do that again. It was well run and well worth it. If anyone is interested the name of the company is Denali Raft Adventures. They are located right in town but you need to take the resort shuttle into town from where Royal has their lodge. Fortunately the shuttle runs into town on a schedule. So you do not have to book the rafting through Royal.

 

We went the year when it was hot and all the wildfires up north in Alaska. The lodge RCL uses has no AC and it was hot. The McKinley Chalet looked very nice with AC but Princess uses it for their cruisetours. On our next Alaska trip we are doing the landside by ourselves and will be booking McKinley Chalet. Another plus is chalet overlooks the Nenana River and is in the middle of town.

 

Yes, we bought the pictures of us.  It was a great time. something we figured we should do while we still could.  When we went in 2018, they offered two different excursions.  We chose the float down the river as opposed to the rapids.  We made the right choice since we were early in the season and the river was running really high from all the snow melt.  The float ended up doing class II and III rapids and the other did class III and IV.  Our trip was perfect with enough whitewater to make it fun.  I heard the other trip was very intense that week.  They were very safe with a second, one man boat ahead of us pointing out wildlife and finding the safest way to go.  He was also there to grab anyone that might fall out of our raft.  

[reallyitsmema]

3 hours ago, jean87510 said:

Thank you for the link!  Very helpful.

 

We will be in Denali on my actual 60th birthday so am looking at the whitewater rafting as it's something I've always wanted to do.  

 

Definitely do it if you it is offered.  I know when we went, they gave you a list of what was available that week and there was some things that were on that link but were crossed off for some reason.  I would suggest you remove any earrings as you put on a dry suit and they pull a hood over your head that is really tight and almost ripped out my earrings.  We wished we had worn thermal underwear too as it got a little cold when you got hit with waves.  I was in the middle, so not as cold because I wasn't being hit with waves as much.  My DH was on the side and was almost hypothermic when we finished.  He was really shaking.

 

The ATV was fun too.  Ours was more like a dune buggy since it was a side by side.  I had never driven one before, so it was neat to drive through the river bed and stream.  We did end up dirty after that excursion and had planned for it.

 

One thing I found that helped with this trip was to pack a suitcase for the cruisetour and one for the cruise.  The bus driver will put a different tag on the cruise luggage and it stays on the bus they whole time.  We were gone for 15 days between our cruise, cruisetour and a few DIY days at the beginning and one at the end.  I know we each had a rollaboard and I think we brought three 26" suitcases with us,  two stayed on the bus and one for the cruisetour if I am remembering correctly.  I know we had to have at least one big suitcase for the cruisetour because they lost my rollaboard when we got to Denali, but I remember I still had clothing to wear, just not what I had planned.  All luggage has to go under the bus each day and you keep a daypack.  They finally found it the last night while we were on the ATV excursion but getting it at 11pm when you are leaving at 7am the next morning was not helpful.  We are not light packers and are glad we had everything we did.  We flew first class since it was such a long flight, so no luggage fees.  We did two days DIY in the Anchorage area before to Fairbanks the morning of our cruisetour to meet our group.  We found Alaska Air at the time had free baggage if you were flying within the state, so that saved us too.  We flew out early but found that the tour director wasn't even at the hotel until the afternoon, so we were on our own.  We weren't the only ones wandering around, wishing they knew the schedule ahead of time as we would have taken a later flight.

 

Another thing that was not communicated well was the transfer from the airport to the hotel.  That is included in the cruisetour price but you need to notify them of your flight information by a certain date or you are on your own.  Some on our cruise didn't find the information in their documents and never got on the transfer list.  

 

We are really happy we did the cruisetour but there is a lot of hurry up and wait.  Hopefully, you have people on your bus that can tell time and believe in schedules.  We had one couple that were late constantly.  It takes away from time at the next stop and they just didn't get it or care.  We were actually leaving them at Glitter Gulch in Denali and they were going to have to get on a different cruisetour bus when they came walking towards the bus as we were pulling away.

[jean87510]

1 hour ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

Definitely do it if you it is offered.  I know when we went, they gave you a list of what was available that week and there was some things that were on that link but were crossed off for some reason.  I would suggest you remove any earrings as you put on a dry suit and they pull a hood over your head that is really tight and almost ripped out my earrings.  We wished we had worn thermal underwear too as it got a little cold when you got hit with waves.  I was in the middle, so not as cold because I wasn't being hit with waves as much.  My DH was on the side and was almost hypothermic when we finished.  He was really shaking.

 

The ATV was fun too.  Ours was more like a dune buggy since it was a side by side.  I had never driven one before, so it was neat to drive through the river bed and stream.  We did end up dirty after that excursion and had planned for it.

 

One thing I found that helped with this trip was to pack a suitcase for the cruisetour and one for the cruise.  The bus driver will put a different tag on the cruise luggage and it stays on the bus they whole time.  We were gone for 15 days between our cruise, cruisetour and a few DIY days at the beginning and one at the end.  I know we each had a rollaboard and I think we brought three 26" suitcases with us,  two stayed on the bus and one for the cruisetour if I am remembering correctly.  I know we had to have at least one big suitcase for the cruisetour because they lost my rollaboard when we got to Denali, but I remember I still had clothing to wear, just not what I had planned.  All luggage has to go under the bus each day and you keep a daypack.  They finally found it the last night while we were on the ATV excursion but getting it at 11pm when you are leaving at 7am the next morning was not helpful.  We are not light packers and are glad we had everything we did.  We flew first class since it was such a long flight, so no luggage fees.  We did two days DIY in the Anchorage area before to Fairbanks the morning of our cruisetour to meet our group.  We found Alaska Air at the time had free baggage if you were flying within the state, so that saved us too.  We flew out early but found that the tour director wasn't even at the hotel until the afternoon, so we were on our own.  We weren't the only ones wandering around, wishing they knew the schedule ahead of time as we would have taken a later flight.

 

Another thing that was not communicated well was the transfer from the airport to the hotel.  That is included in the cruisetour price but you need to notify them of your flight information by a certain date or you are on your own.  Some on our cruise didn't find the information in their documents and never got on the transfer list.  

 

We are really happy we did the cruisetour but there is a lot of hurry up and wait.  Hopefully, you have people on your bus that can tell time and believe in schedules.  We had one couple that were late constantly.  It takes away from time at the next stop and they just didn't get it or care.  We were actually leaving them at Glitter Gulch in Denali and they were going to have to get on a different cruisetour bus when they came walking towards the bus as we were pulling away.

thanks so much.  Very helpful.  Yes we will definitely need the thermals as the older I get the colder I get.  Started snorkeling in half wet suits in December and January as I hate that cold shock.  

Yes, there is always that one couple.  To be truthful, it's usually us!

[SuzD123]

On 9/9/2023 at 8:03 AM, reallyitsmema said:

 

Definitely do it if you it is offered.  I know when we went, they gave you a list of what was available that week and there was some things that were on that link but were crossed off for some reason.  I would suggest you remove any earrings as you put on a dry suit and they pull a hood over your head that is really tight and almost ripped out my earrings.  We wished we had worn thermal underwear too as it got a little cold when you got hit with waves.  I was in the middle, so not as cold because I wasn't being hit with waves as much.  My DH was on the side and was almost hypothermic when we finished.  He was really shaking.

 

The ATV was fun too.  Ours was more like a dune buggy since it was a side by side.  I had never driven one before, so it was neat to drive through the river bed and stream.  We did end up dirty after that excursion and had planned for it.

 

One thing I found that helped with this trip was to pack a suitcase for the cruisetour and one for the cruise.  The bus driver will put a different tag on the cruise luggage and it stays on the bus they whole time.  We were gone for 15 days between our cruise, cruisetour and a few DIY days at the beginning and one at the end.  I know we each had a rollaboard and I think we brought three 26" suitcases with us,  two stayed on the bus and one for the cruisetour if I am remembering correctly.  I know we had to have at least one big suitcase for the cruisetour because they lost my rollaboard when we got to Denali, but I remember I still had clothing to wear, just not what I had planned.  All luggage has to go under the bus each day and you keep a daypack.  They finally found it the last night while we were on the ATV excursion but getting it at 11pm when you are leaving at 7am the next morning was not helpful.  We are not light packers and are glad we had everything we did.  We flew first class since it was such a long flight, so no luggage fees.  We did two days DIY in the Anchorage area before to Fairbanks the morning of our cruisetour to meet our group.  We found Alaska Air at the time had free baggage if you were flying within the state, so that saved us too.  We flew out early but found that the tour director wasn't even at the hotel until the afternoon, so we were on our own.  We weren't the only ones wandering around, wishing they knew the schedule ahead of time as we would have taken a later flight.

 

Another thing that was not communicated well was the transfer from the airport to the hotel.  That is included in the cruisetour price but you need to notify them of your flight information by a certain date or you are on your own.  Some on our cruise didn't find the information in their documents and never got on the transfer list.  

 

We are really happy we did the cruisetour but there is a lot of hurry up and wait.  Hopefully, you have people on your bus that can tell time and believe in schedules.  We had one couple that were late constantly.  It takes away from time at the next stop and they just didn't get it or care.  We were actually leaving them at Glitter Gulch in Denali and they were going to have to get on a different cruisetour bus when they came walking towards the bus as we were pulling away.

We are taking our first cruisetour and first Alaska sailing in May 2024 on Radiance.  THIS is best information and suggestions received to-date.  Thank you.  🙂

 

 

[Brandis]

We‘re doing Cruisetour 1b next summer, with Talkeetna as the last leg, after Denali. The program say free time at Talkeetna from 5:30 PM, which feels a bit late, as it‘s only about a 3h drive from Denali to Talkeetna and I‘d guess the Denali tour should be over by noon?