mangomike

For us it seems as though there are three tours that we would be interested in… whale watching… Glaciers…. Wildlife and scenery

My wife and I will be visiting a number of different locations in August 2014 …so my question is which town to take which tours from. The tours are expensive enough so that we will probably only take one of each kind of tour. We are a 65 year old couple in fair condition. We are up for some light hiking, but no kayaks. Our main interests are seeing new things… Photography.. And of course.. Whales… Glaciers…. And wildlife/Bears.

At the present time the towns that we are planning to visit are.. Sitka.. Juneau…Gustavus…. Haines… Skagway…. Stewart…. Kenai Fjords area …Anchorage…. Denali…

We will be taking the ferry from Sitka to Skagway/Juneau…. And then we will have a vehicle.

We have not completely determined how many days we will spend in each place or that these are the final towns that we will visit. Some that depends on the answers that I get. We are flexible enough at this time so that we can add an extra day here or there.

So the question is… which tours…? with what company …? .. In which of the above towns? Or do I need to add a couple of towns for a particular tour.? Do you think I should add a flight seeing or helicopter tour?
Thanks for any & all ideas
m

emalloy

In Denali the park service runs the tours. We did see great wildlife there.i would for the longer tours to increase the likelihood of sittings.

sunbum1944

We did a Denali tour- we did see grizzlies- one was right beside the bus below my window.

We did a whale watch/salmon bake at Juneau- this was fabulous as we saw several pods of whales doing "bubble net feeding." It is just amazing to see- you can check YouTube and you will see what I mean- that was the highlight of the trip for me.

I liked the railway trip in Skagway-

We took a float plane trip through snow capped mountains and landed on a remote lake.

My cousin did a bear watch from Homer- too expensive for my blood ( $600 )- but apparently if you check with operator the day before and trip is not full, you can get a 1/2 price fare. Wish I had known.

For me, the watching the whales do a bubble net feed was worth every penny!

LindainOhio

Look at the websites for the coupon books Northern Lights and Toursaver www.toursaver.com. The 2014 books are not out yet but I would think they may offer similar 2 for 1 offers in the 2014 book. Get on their email list and they will send you the info when the new books come out.

We had the Toursaver coupon book and only used the 2 Major Marine 2 for 1 coupons. We saved $340 by using them on their day cruise out of Whittier and the Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise--2 very worthwhile cruises.

My other suggestion is to rent a car as soon as you know your dates. Cars are expensive in Alaska but you save an amazing amount of money if you book a year in advance. We didn't plan that far in advance.

Gardyloo

We will be taking the ferry from Sitka to Skagway/Juneau…. And then we will have a vehicle.

Do you plan to drive a rental car from Skagway to Anchorage/Kenai etc.? Or will this be in your own car (perhaps brought on the ferry from Bellingham to Juneau then dropped while you bounce around SE Alaska?) If a rental, are you aware of the costs and options?

I would strongly suggest you work on the logistics of your intra-State transportation before worrying about tours.

Cheshirecatt

Two tours that I personally believe should not be missed are:
1. the Kenai Fjords National Park Tour in Seward (do the longer ones)for incredible marine wildlife
2. Taking the green shuttle bus through Denali National park for a full day to see bears/moose

If you want to see pics of my Alaskan Roadtrip and other Alaska trip articles:
www.dreamhorsemedia.com/travel/