I need a recommendation, please

[judyfssw]

My brother-in-law and his wife will be joining us on the Summit, July,2005. My husband is somewhat handicapped so is unable to do a lot of the excursions. I would like this cruise to be special. I have been emailing them different parts of threads that I thought were interesting and hoping that something would catch their interest. My thought is that we would arrive in Anchorage and spend an extra day before we take the train to Seward. And, then spend a day in Seward before we take the cruise and spend an extra day in Vancouver before we come home.

Would anyone help me with ideas. Denali Park seems to interest them a little but is it too far for a day's excursion? What would you do in Anchorage? Would you even spend a whole day there? What about Seward?

Your opinions would be greatly appreciated.

[LSilver]

Judy:

 

I don't know about Anchorage as we haven't been there.

 

When we b2b'd Alaska back in '99 we had the whole day to spend in Seward. It's a fairly small town. With another 2 couples who were also b2b'ing we found an excursion that took us around the bay (which is fairly extensive) on which Seward resides. The trip lasted 4-5 hours (I think) and included lunch on an island in the bay. It's a very nice town, but aside from an excursion like that there isn't really a whole lot to do there.

[jezzdogg]

Really nothing to do in either Anchorage or Steward. We did the trolly tour in Anchorage that lasted and hour an half and that was it. I would spend the extra time in Vancouver ..... Stanley Park, Grousse Mountain...., or spend the extra time in Denali.......(would not waste my time in either of those two cities in my opinion) As for some of the excrusions, what about the White Pass railroad excursion in Skagway, we did Whale watching off a boat with Captain Larrry from Orca enterprises, he is great and they can handle handicap people of his boat.

[jerfl]

As this may be the only trip to Alaska made together; at least consider and look into combining your Seward and Anchorage "extra days" and add one more day and book the three day/night Alaskan Railroad Package to Denali with the 8 Hour Tundra Tour into the Park. This is a great little package that offers alot of the best that "The Great Land" has to offer in terms of scenic Geography and wildlife. Go to http://www.alaskarailroad.com and look into it. The Kenai Fjords Tour is not quite the only thing to do in Seward. The Marine Life Center is there as well which tho small, I thought was quite interesting. Alaska Railroad also offers a package to Seward that includes the rail and the Kenai Fjords Tour whcih can easily be done on sailing day prior to boarding. Kenai Fjord Tours will meet you at the train and transfer you to the excursion vessel and then to the ship. An overnight Hotel can be added as well. Anchorage is actually quite a city and there is alot to do there. Shopping for native and resident art will expose you to the very best to be seen. Even if you do not buy anything, it costs nothing to look The Anchorage Art and History Museum has a fine collection of Landscape paintings and native artifacts presented in diorama type exhibits which are really quite educational without being high brow. The Native Heritage Center is also in Anchorage and is a quasi type Williamsburg type-"living"-exhibit of the various Native tribes and the areas they inhabit throughout Alaska. All these sights can be done on a one day bus tour to facilitate transportation. Also check out the following websites:http://www.Ilovealaska.com, http://www.alaska.com, http://www.kenaifjordstours, http://www.anchorage.com, these will also offer many other links to follow. By all means, do take the whale watching tour with Capt. Larry and the Purple boat in Juneau. He is a real whale-man and knows the ways of the resident pods of Humpbacks and Orcas that reside in Stephens Passage just slightly North of Juneau out of Auke Bay. I did most of this with my Mom, myself and her wheelchair before we ever reached the ship (except for Capt Larry) and it was a source of great memories and conversation for her before she passed away. The act of being able to watch her face while experience all this and the pictures I have to always treasure made this the Best Trip I have ever had to date. Good Luck, you can do it !