mo13

Can anyone tell me if the 6 hour and the 7 1/2 hour Major Marine Kenai Fjords tours are the same. I think the 7 1/2 hour tour stops at another glacier, when the 6 hr. rides by it, but is this worth the extra time? We are finishing our reservations and found that on June 8 (when we are in Seward) the 7 1/2 hour tour is not running yet. Should we reroute our entire trip to be able to take the longer tour? Thanks in advance!

gail

We visited Alaska 4 years ago - about 8 days in a rental car on land and then a cruise after - starting the land portion mid-June. We found several places told us they had just opened for the season and the road into Denali had opened only 3 days prior to our arrival - it varies a bit each year by weather/snow cover.

But to your question - we took the longer cruise and when deciding saw a map indicating that the longer one ran further into the fjords, stopping for about 45 minutes at one glacier which we watched calving (big chunks falling off). Since that is a spontaneous and unpredictable event, not sure if you would see that on longer or shorter tour - nor if I would rework an entire trip for another glacier.

However, my first paragraph might indicate a larger reason to consider doing so.

dfrostnh

That's not the company we went with. Try
http://www.kenaifjords.com/

When I looked at Major Marine, it included a salmon dinner. The 9 hour trip we took only stopped briefly at Fox Island to pick up some passengers. Our lunch was served on board the boat. It was a very good fried halibut pieces. If the water is choppy, you might not want any lunch. Their 9-hour trip starts June 2. We lucked out with very calm ocean, like being on a lake but did not luck out, none of the glaciers calved but seeing orcas etc up very close is incredible. We had a flexible schedule on a late June trip and chose a day when we knew the weather was going to be good. Reserved the day before. There were lots of open seats and nice not to be crowded. The captain altered the route slightly based on whale sightings. Because of the length, expect the trip back to be faster, less narration. DH chose to nap.

You might want to compare the routes offered by each company.

gail

Actually - company dfrost mentions is the one we used as well. I was mistaken.

Bring/take motion sickness medication. I was really sick until it kicked in. One thing I learned is that looking thru binoculars does something to equilibrium of those susceptible to motion sickness - somehow intensifying the motion sickness thing. But still had a great time once I was able to leave the bathroom.

mo13

Thanks for all your input! I agree, reworking the trip for a glacier would be silly. Just want to be sure it isn't the highlight of all glaciers on this trip. We chose this tour because we have a 2 for 1 coupon (tour saver). It appears we will save a chunk using this booklet. Has anyone had experience with the coupon book?
Motion sickness!! I hope we can enjoy this delicious sounding lunch. Do you have any suggestions for which medicine works better? It appears there are a few to choose from.

china_cat

I got good advice from others when I was deciding about this trip...the Kenai Fjords tour is about the wildlife more than the glaciers. And the longer you are on the water, the more wildlife you can see. That influenced me to take the 9hour tour which goes to Northwest Fjord. The Northwest glacier is actually kind of underwhelming (after Glacier Bay and College Fjord!), but the wildlife on the long tour was terrific.

I took more photos on this tour than any other part of our trip, I think. The weather was a big reason why. Here's a link to some, if you are interested.
http://north2alaska-chinacat.blogspo...onal-park.html

We were around the same time of year as you...maybe a week later. We lucked out because the day we went out the sky was clear blue, and the sea was like glass. Nobody on the boat had any motion sickness issues. Of course, there are no guarantees...it just depends on the weather and the seas.

gail

The generic is meclizine - it is a component in many of the "less drowsy" motion sickness medications. The lower dose and a cup of coffee keeps my stomach stable and the rest of me awake. Lots of threads here on motion sickness meds.

mo13

Once again - great information! I hope we get lucky and have a beautiful day as well. If not I will be prepared with rain gear and motion sickness meds.

Connie

We used the coupon book at several places and never had a problem. A great money saver if you use it enough to recoup the cost of the book. When we got home, I advertised mine on ebay, mentioning the coupons that were now missing, and got some of my money back.

We used Major Marine one year and Kenai Fjords the other year. Both were great. We came to find out the longer you are out the more wildlife and closer to glaciers you get.

mo13

thanks Connie, It looks like we will be able to save alot with the coupon book. Glad to know it is readily accepted. Good advise to resell it!