Alaskan excursion experiences, inc Zip - just back!

[highseascruiser]

Just returned from the Zaandam. We had a great time with wonderful weather, hope you are all so lucky!

There were some questions about Alaska Zip a couple of weeks ago, so I thought I would let you know about our experience. Juneau was the port I was unsure about, I wanted to do the Misty Fjords Wilderness tour in Ketchikan and the train with Liarsville in Skagway. This is my second trip to Alaska - I was on the Volendam two years ago and went whale watching with Orca Enterprises then (excellent) and also been in Victoria since then so we didn't want to do it again yet. I was unsure about the ziplining. We were a mixed age group, 12-48, fit to unfit! But I wanted to take a tour I knew my kids would enjoy, so I booked a couple of days before we left. It was awesome! We had Rachel and Matt as guides and all six of us enjoyed it so much. The guides were obviously very safety conscious and as a parent, that was very reassuring. We were picked up from the ship, dropped off again where we wanted to be, altogether a great and exciting experience that we would all like to do again.

As to the other tours, in Skagway I had taken the return train trip two years ago, but the family we were traveling with wanted to do it, so we chose the one way with Liarsville, with was corny but great fun!

The surprising thing was the one tour I wanted to do was the Misty Fjords boat trip, (it was booked solid 2 years ago and we couldn't get on), and this was my least favorite excursion. It was OK, just not as good as expected. It was really good weather, not even misty! But it was still cold on the top deck as the boat moves very quickly. There were no seats available downstairs, so we stayed upstairs, but it was very cold. I was also disappointed that when we heard over the speaker that there was a snack available and somebody would be around with crackers to go with the soup or chilli. We waited then eventually went down to investigate, only to be told that there was none left. We were not the only ones not to get food. There was however a drink available. We weren't particularly hungry - who is cruising? - but something warm to eat would have been good. We found that even when people came up to the top and we went down thinking there would be empty seats, people would leave their things all over the seats, so still nowhere to sit! But the scenery was beautiful and the waterfalls were magnificent.

I started writing this in answer to Alaskazip.com questions, highly recommended, knowledgeable, friendly people, highly recommended!

[TrojanJulez]

Oh cool, thanks for the info! I'm so glad to know that you have used the company we're going to use and had a great time! I have read another great review, too, but it is from a few years ago, so I'm glad that they're still leading good tours! How nice that you actually had Rachel and Matt as your guides, too. I have spoken with Rachel a few times, and she seems very nice!

 

I have a few more questions if you don't mind... How large was your group? Was there a lot of waiting time? Had you zipped before? Was it scary? Were you warm enough with the windbreakers that they provided? What did you wear underneath? Did your camera fit easily in the jacket pocket? Any photos you can share?

 

Yikes, that's a lot of questions! :eek: Thank you in advance!!! :)

[highseascruiser]

There were 6 in our group, but on the day we visited there was a large group of exchange students that were split into different groups. Some had already been out, some were waiting to go. We had 4 of them added to our group, making a total of 10. Other groups can be on the course at the same time, in fact, it added to the experience - at one point we could see somebody zipping above us, where we had previously been, as the lines cross.

There obviously was waiting time, getting a group dressed and informed of safety rules, etc, and also waiting for 10 people to zip across before moving to the next platform - each one of the group completes one line before moving to the next. But there is always a guide with the group - one crosses first and the other comes last and with the interest of watching others in the group and lots of information from the guides, it never felt like actually waiting.

None of our group had ever done anything like this before and before starting I was very nervous, in fact stepping off the first platform, I was VERY VERY nervous! After the first zip, I felt better and after the second, I really enjoyed it. As I said, we were from age 12 to 48, and every one of us so enjoyed it and would love to go again. It was a sunny dry when we were there. I left my fleece in the lodge, (they have a box to put anything you don't want to take to lock up), so just had a long sleeved tee on, and I was warm enough until the end when I felt chilly. Others kept on fleece and were fine too. I would advise maybe wearing a tee and a sweatshirt or similar if it is average temperature. We didn't wear gloves. Helmets provided of course, so no hats. The windbreakers were good with zip pockets, I took a digital camera and sunglasses, which fitted with room to spare. The pockets wouldn't hold SLR type cameras.

I'm sure I will have photos, just not got around to downloading yet. You will have a great time, don't be surprised if you are nervous to begin with. I was very impressed with the safety aspects. I wish I was going with you!

[UMTerp]

May I ask how far in advance would I need to book the zip adventure?

 

TIA!

 

UMTerp

[highseascruiser]

I don't know. As I said I only really decided a few days before, called them, left a message for them to call me with the date I was interested in, they called back and I booked a couple of days before we left for our cruise. I guess it would depend how busy they are when you are scheduled to be in Juneau.

[rclcruzer]

is this the Zip in Juneau? If it is We are doing this as well,6/30/07, me DH and kids 12-17. Thanks for the great feedback, I know the one ISP is going to be the worlds biggest and best !?

[MercedMike]

We found that even when people came up to the top and we went down thinking there would be empty seats, people would leave their things all over the seats, so still nowhere to sit!

 

"Oh, is that your guidebook and hat lying under my seat here? Here, I will be very happy to move my feet so you can pick it up. Gee, too bad that it seems to have fallen in that puddle. I didn't notice it lying there when I sat down. Wonder how it fell there? Did you drop it as you were leaving???"

 

>:-)

[highseascruiser]

I must be just tooooooooo nice (or something!) but I will make a note of those lines and try them out next time - just hope it's not your seat Mike!

[TrojanJulez]

Thanks so much for the info, Highseascruiser! It sounds like a blast! I will definitely follow your advice about what to wear, and we're planning to bring our older, smaller digital camera because we can't bring the DSLR with us (just for this excursion). Was it relatively easy to pass the camera amongst each other to get photos of everyone? And did you see any wildlife? Thanks!

[Cruisn4jewels]

Thanks for all the details! We'll be doing this excursion in July. DH and I are taking our 2 children and our friends 2 kids and I'll never hear the end of it if our friends daughter doesn't have fun. :) Rachel was lovely to deal with as well. I can't wait to go!!

[highseascruiser]

It's very easy to pass the camera between people - just change the order people zip across and the first can then use the camera for the others. As to wildlife, we didn't see anything on the course - I didn't think it likely anyway, but much less so with a large group of excited students about! However there is a good chance of seeing wildlife on the trip there and back. Forgot to mention, the guides take photos of everyone and put together a short slide show at the end which it is possible along with photos. Have fun!

[TrojanJulez]

It's very easy to pass the camera between people - just change the order people zip across and the first can then use the camera for the others. As to wildlife, we didn't see anything on the course - I didn't think it likely anyway, but much less so with a large group of excited students about! However there is a good chance of seeing wildlife on the trip there and back. Forgot to mention, the guides take photos of everyone and put together a short slide show at the end which it is possible along with photos. Have fun!

Do you remember the pricing for the photos that they took? How about for the whole slide show? And can you buy a CD of the photos, or just the prints? Thanks! :)

[highseascruiser]

Sorry I don't remember the info on the photos - hopefully someone else can let you know.

[TrojanJulez]

Just FYI: I got an email from Rachel, and she said:

"We are looking forward to taking you zipping through the forest this summer. Regarding pictures, we take loads of pictures of each group, and we burn them all onto a cd/dvd with music and sell the whole thing for $50. There is a specially designed photo cover on the jewel case, and you are guaranteed to have close-ups and action shots of each person as well as group photos if you are with other people. I hope that helps, and we look forward to seeing you soon!"

$50 seems kind of high, but I am such a photo-fanatic, I have a feeling we'll do it... as long as the shots are good, that is! I believe someone wrote earlier that they show you a slide show at the end of the tour, so we can decide if they got good pictures.

 

Just thought I'd post the info, especially since there are a couple of live scrapbook threads right now. :)

[momofkaze]

Thanks for the info.....