Our experienceTransport Whittier to Achorage

[Michele M]

We are just off Island Princess and had a fabulous time. Many people on these boards always ask about transportation from Whittier to Anchorage. I thought I would share our experience and mistakes. There were four of us traveling.

 

After researching the extremely high rental car rates for a one way rental in whittier, we chose Alaska Transportation Group ($33pp) and then rent a car($52) that I reserved in Anchorage as our flight did not leave till 9:42pm. Of course in hindsight I made a huge mistake. I would not normally write such a bad review of a company, but I do want others to know what can happen so you don't make the same mistakes I did. I'm sure our experiences are not normally how this company operates but here's what happened:

 

We got off the ship at 8:15am and my reservation with Alaska Transportation Group stated that there driver would be there by 8:40. As promised three vans showed up at 8:40 and we found them immediately. One of the drivers asked us to wait by the vans while they located other people. There was a lot of confusion in finding their other customers and finally after 9:00 they loaded the luggage. We asked what van we should be in and they told us however they were very confused about which people were going on a tour and which were going to the airport. They squeezed all our luggage and us into one of the vans with 9 people total. By this time the driver said he would try to make the one way tunnel but was not sure if we could. The tunnel was closed by the time we got there and would not open again till 10:00. The driver decided to take us on a quick tour of Whittier (there was absolutely nothing to see) and then took us back to the parking lot where the other two vans were. The drivers decided they wanted to squeeze one more person in our van. They took out 3 of our suitcases and put them in one of the other vans assuring us that it would go directly to the airport with us. We asked again if they were sure our luggage would go directly to the airport and were told yes, all three vans were going directly there and there would be no tour.

 

We arrived at the airport already an hour behind schedule. The driver called the other van that had our luggage and part of a large group of people traveling together. The other part of the group was in our van. The driver informed us that they did go on a short tour and that our luggage and the other part of the group would be arriving in about a half hour. After almost an hour the other van finally arrived and everything was sorted out. By now it is 12:45. We decided that we could not keep our rental reservation as it was already so late and we were a little irritated. We had planned a long drive with some stops.

 

I have already left 3 messeges for Alaska Transportation group with a promise the owner would call back. They had already charged my credit card 10 days out. I am not greedy and am not looking for a free ride but would like to talk to the owner about what happened and agree to some compensation for this transportation disaster.

 

I have done a lot of traveling and 4 cruises now and have never had a problem with either independent excursions or transportation but here is what I learned from this experience, ecspecially with the one way tunnel in whittier:

 

1) Ship sponsored transfers may be more expensive but will get you where you need to go in an organized manner.

 

2) Make sure the company you book with is very reliable and that they do not charge the entire amount before they provide their service. I did not read a lot about Alaska Transportation Group but they seemed reliable.

 

3)Renting a car in whittier is expensive, but it would have saved us hours of frustration and we would have been on our way quicky on our own schedule

 

4)You get what you pay for.

 

Good luck to all with your transportation to Anchorage. If I were to do it all over again I wouldnt change a thing about the cruise, but I would definitely rent a car or take the train to anchorage. Sorry this has been so long.

 

Michele

[crest]

Hi Michele,

 

Thanks for sharing your bad experience with us, I was actually, about to book with that company... after reading your experience I think I will look for another company.

[NancyIL]

Thanks for your review, Michele. I'm sorry you had a disappointing experience getting to Anchorage in a timely manner. If you cancelled your rental car reservation in Anchorage - what did you do until your flight left?

 

We're booked with Alaskan Leopard for a 4-hour tour from Whittier to Anchorage, and I pre-paid when I made my reservation months ago. The reports I read from last summer were all good, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything will go smoothly after our cruise in a few weeks.

[cjnky]

I had seriously considered AK Transportation, but their responses to my e-mail questions were much too vague for me to feel comfortable. I wanted direct transportation without a tour so this is the one spot on our trip where I decided to rely on the Princess transfer, and it sounds like that was a good decision. :cool:

[Michele M]

Thanks for your review, Michele. I'm sorry you had a disappointing experience getting to Anchorage in a timely manner. If you cancelled your rental car reservation in Anchorage - what did you do until your flight left?

 

We're booked with Alaskan Leopard for a 4-hour tour from Whittier to Anchorage, and I pre-paid when I made my reservation months ago. The reports I read from last summer were all good, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything will go smoothly after our cruise in a few weeks.

We saw the Alaskan Leopard tour. The guide was very good and we watched as he got all the people and there luggage on board quickly and were out of the parking lot before 9am. They did a very good job and if anyone is booked on the Magic Bus, they looked very efficient. That's all I really noticed though. The tunnel closes at 9:15 so they had plenty of time. It is only a couple of minutes from the port. We spent the rest of our time at the airport. We had lunch and dinner there and played hours of cards in between. I think we all know every inch of the airport. We could probably have done something else, but just didn't feel like it. We flew on NWA and they did let us check our luggage early.

 

By the way, we were on Island princess and were given silver 1 luggage tags that say that you get off the ship at 8:45. We asked and were told we could get off at any time with those tags. We got off at 8:15.

 

Michele

[diego]

Michele - Sorry to hear about your bad experience. Stinks to end a vacation that way. I just got off the Island Princess on Monday also (great trip :D ). We almost booked with Alaska Transportation Group but we chose the Alaskan Leopard Comedy Tour instead. It was actually a nice day. Kindof silly but we knew that when we booked. We stopped at Portage Glacier (visitor center is still closed) and the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. My flight was originally scheduled for 3:40 (later changed to 4:15) so I did not have time for the Princess tour but did want to see some sights.

Worked out great. My only problem came at the airport. When they dropped us off at the main terminal, the driver named several airlines that were located there. My parents were flying Continental and that was one that he named. When we got inside, we were told that Continental was in a completely different terminal and they would need to wait outside (with lots of luggage) for a shuttle bus to take them there.

Other than that, it was a good tour.

[crest]

I decided to rely on the Princess transfer, and it sounds like that was a good decision. :cool:

 

How did you book that Princess transfer? I can't see it anywhere on the Princess's website.

[cjnky]

How did you book that Princess transfer? I can't see it anywhere on the Princess's website

 

Turned that one over to my TA, who has had a really easy job of it on our trip! :)

[ARRTrain]

Good thing you were all on the Northbound Island. The power went out and the tunnel closed around 12:30pm and did not reopen until 4:30pm.

 

There was 12 full buses waiting in line and some smaller buses, like Magic Bus.

[BKLYNPONY]

Michele - Sorry to hear about your bad experience. Stinks to end a vacation that way. I just got off the Island Princess on Monday also (great trip :D ). We almost booked with Alaska Transportation Group but we chose the Alaskan Leopard Comedy Tour instead. It was actually a nice day. Kindof silly but we knew that when we booked. We stopped at Portage Glacier (visitor center is still closed) and the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. My flight was originally scheduled for 3:40 (later changed to 4:15) so I did not have time for the Princess tour but did want to see some sights.

Worked out great. My only problem came at the airport. When they dropped us off at the main terminal, the driver named several airlines that were located there. My parents were flying Continental and that was one that he named. When we got inside, we were told that Continental was in a completely different terminal and they would need to wait outside (with lots of luggage) for a shuttle bus to take them there.

Other than that, it was a good tour.

 

So that was you. My wife is telling me that she remembers saying that your wife looked very familiar. She can only remember what she looks like and remembers her saying to "not let dad take any more pictures" because he wasn't doing a good job. The same thing happened to us at the airport as well (America West). Otherwise it was a nice transfer from the ship to the airport.

[diego]

So that was you. My wife is telling me that she remembers saying that your wife looked very familiar. She can only remember what she looks like and remembers her saying to "not let dad take any more pictures" because he wasn't doing a good job. The same thing happened to us at the airport as well (America West). Otherwise it was a nice transfer from the ship to the airport.

 

You could tell where we both did our research, our trips were almost identical!

I had no idea that was you. I thought you both looked familiar, but I figured it was just from passing on the ship. Now if you had on our lovely trekking outfits, I would have definitely recognized you! :D

Yes, that was me commenting on my dad's horrendous pictures!

 

Debbi (long story on the user name ;) ).

[Michele M]

Just to update everyone on my transportation troubles. I finally did get in contact with the owner of Alaska Transportation Group. He appologized and offered me a 25% refund. He did more talking than listening and I felt he just wanted to resolve the situation quickly without really hearing the problem. I didn't really feel better after talking with him but writing about it here seemed like the right thing to do.

 

Michele

[EYELADY]

Thanks so much for this information, Michelle M. I will stay with the Princess tranfer that includes Portage Glacier and the Wildlife Center, unless I read of other suggestions. Just wish we knew more about this excursion from someone who has done it.

[alaskaklondike]

There are 4 of us traveling also, and I am going to bite the bullet and just pay the extra money to rent the car in Whittier. Thanks so much for sharing you experience. I was going back and forth about what to do, but you cleared it up for me!

[Izzy'smom]

Thank you for posting your experience with ATG. I was very close to booking with them, but decided at the last minute to book the train. Now I know I made the right decision!

[LoriPhil]

Crest - we hadn't seen any Whittier-Anchorage transfers either, but our TA booked us with Princess' Turnagain Arm History & Tram tour. It's page 156 if you have Princess' Alaska Adventures Ashore book. It takes you to the Portage Glacier Visitor Center, up the Glacier Express Tram at Mt. Alyeska, and to the Anchorage Museum of History & Art in Anchorage. It's not recommended for people with flights out before 4 PM. (Gak! I assumed it took us all the way to the airport at the end, but am not seeing that in the info... time to call the TA!)

[EYELADY]

Thanks for bringing that tour to my attention, as well as the book, which I had forgotten about. Since this tour description states that it "coordinates with purchased transfers to Anchorage" , I would assume it takes you to the airport.

 

Oddly enough, the tour we have booked on line through Princess is not listed in the adventures ashore book. I still would like to hear from someone who has actually done one of these tours/tranfers. Maybe in the next few weeks, but we are only 36 days away.

[gambit57]

Just back from the Sapphire.

 

We did Alaska Timberwolf Tours. $55/person. We had a private van for 5 people. Not sure I could recommend tho.

 

Picked us up at the promised 8:45am. Got us loaded and out promptly. Actually got through the tunnel and to Anchorage promptly. That part was good.

 

Our complaint was that we had a LOT of time to kill. So, we were supposed to have some stops, some hour tour in some park where there's an admission fee, etc. Our driver didn't pull over for pics until we asked when we were gonna get the photo ops we were promised. He only stopped at some random turnoffs. He tried to go down one road that was a "popular" sight seeing stop right outside of Anchorage, but that was closed. He'd mention stuff to look at, but not know what the things were. Only knew the city of Anchorage, sort of. Didn't know much of anything outside of Anchorage.

 

Timberwolf advertises itself as a "Tour" company. That was NOT our experience. It was more like a direct transfer. Taking the Princess transfer woulda been better cuz we wouldn't have had to deal with our luggage. I didn't book it, so I don't know how they handle complaints yet but the person who did book was really mad so I'm sure she'll complain if she hasn't already.

[Chocochip]

1) Ship sponsored transfers may be more expensive but will get you where you need to go in an organized manner.

 

 

 

 

Not sure you can count on this. On our trip from Seward to Anchorage last week, we had two very different experiences, both with ship-sponsored transfers.

 

My hubby, 2 kids and I were on an early bus because we had an early flight. We disembarked on schedule (6:25am), got on the bus, which was right there, and then left about 10 minites later. We had a good driver, uneventful trip and were brought right to the airport, arriving around 10:30?, where our luggage was being held for us until 2pm. No complaints at all.

 

My in-laws, on the other hand, had an awful experience. They had a later flight, but we had been planning to spend the day with them sight-seeing in Anchorage. We had no luck trying to switch our arrangements to the same bus. So we made plans to meet up with them after they got there.

 

They expected to leave the ship ay 7:25, they said it was much later. Then, the bus didn't leave for a while. Along the way, they took an unscheduled stop at a wildlife center, "to stretch your legs", where it was pointed out "we depend on donations from folks like you". My inlaws complained about the stop and the bus driver said it would only be a 20 minute stop- it was really more like an hour. They weren't brought to the airport, but to a downtown location, where they needed to get their luggage and take another bus to the airport. They got there around 1:30, throroughly frustrated with the entire experience. And of course, at that point, it was too late for us to do anything with them.

 

I'm not sure how typical this experience is, but ship sponsored transfers don't seem to be a guarantee of a frustration-free expereince.

[steimey]

The transfers from Princess in Whittier are excellent IMHO. (This was our second time to do this.) We were at the tunnel by 8am and had our rent a car by 10am. For the small amount that a couple would save, I just do not see the point.

[cruisin2alaska]

The transfers from Princess in Whittier are excellent IMHO. (This was our second time to do this.) We were at the tunnel by 8am and had our rent a car by 10am. For the small amount that a couple would save, I just do not see the point.

 

Just curious. Where did you pickup your rental car from? Was it the Anchorage airport. Since you weren't flying out first thing in the AM, did you have to do anything special to get an early slot using the Princess transfer service?

 

I am cruising in August and finalized my "transportation plans" for getting from the ship to my rental car for post-cruise touring is one of the remaining "to-do" items. :) Thx!

[steimey]

Both times we rented a car at the Anchorage airport for our independent post cruise land tour. Your large bags will be there waiting for you to pick up. During the cruise, they will ask you about your post cruise arrangements and passengers with Transfers and car rental pick up at Anchorage Airport is an option. Our time slot for disembarkation was listed as 7am, the first time slot for the independent passengers. We hit the tunnel right at 7:58 am. The time slots for independent passengers without Princess transfers were 8:15 and 8:45am.

You also have the option of leaving your bags at the airport and they will drop you at the hospitality hotel in downtown Anchorage. I never looked into this as we were off on our land tour.

[EdukatedRedHed]

I actually just logged in to post my experience with Alaska Transportation Group!!! Look for my post ... it was a horrible experience!!

[smattapup]

We booked a local tour company for a Seward-Anchorage transfer (http://www.salmonberrytours.com), and there was a LOT of communication back and forth before we arrived, so it ended up being a good final day. If you're going to spend the money, you want to make sure the tour guides are both local and experienced; perhaps your guys had seasonal help who weren't as familiar with the lay of the land (or maybe they just don't have their act together). Our guide talked about the rigors of breaking in a new driver to the point that she trusted him to lead a tour. Don't be afraid to be pushy up front about getting information.

 

The cruise transfers are efficient but pretty inflexible.

 

Thanks for sharing the story. CC Boards were a great resource when we were planning our trip.