When We lived in AK, one of the things we did for fun was to go watch the tourists. Some of them were hilarious. I could walk to Mendenhall glacier with the pushchair and sometimes the tourists would see penguins. Penguins LOL.
We are going on a small ship cruise in Aug/Sept '17. Won’t feel claustrophobic hopefully because only 76 passengers on board! This is a budget buster but likely our only trip to the area. We are going on an Un-cruise from Sitka to Juneau to Ketchikan. We are visiting Denali beforehand and staying in the park at Camp Denali. Two segments on the train.
Have been reading the other cc as well as trip advisor. Will probably not prebook any excursions as many things will be covered similarly on this cruise. But interested in all suggestions especially walking tours. Have no interest in the large cruises, expect this to me more of the vibe of Club Med which we have thoroughly enjoyed in the past.
Watching the whales bubblenet-feeding remains one of the highlights of any vacation we’ve ever had. The trips are out of Juneau.
Here is a voice for the small boats! Try Lindblad or the Un- Cruise. For us, Alaska is about the nature. With these companies you are upclose and personal with nature. You are in areas where the big ships simply can not, or will not, go and are at eye level with bears, whales, otters , glaciers and more! Yes, they are more expensive - but everything is included - all nature based. This is an awesome way to cruise Alaska without crowds.
About ago, we went with the Mouse to Alaska and had a blast. My wife planned all of our excursions on her own, so she deserves the credit. In Ketchikan, we went sea kayaking with Southeast Seas Kayaking. It was a lot of fun, and we had some of the best smoked salmon I’ve ever had (in fact, I’ve ordered more through them). In Juneau, she booked a special tour package. We flew to Hoona, and a guide to see bears, bald eagles, and salmon spawning, flew back over the glacier, and then went whale watching. We only saw one bear, but the salmon were running, and it was a beautiful day. It was absolutely gorgeous. My daughter had a blast as our guide was a female college student. So, she had an outdoorswomen to look up to. My family are certified Disney-freaks, so the cruise itself was a hit.
Okay, this is probably cheating because it wasn’t really part of a cruise – but when my family did an Inside Passage cruise from Anchorage, I arranged a pre-cruise trip to Brooks Lodge in Katmai National Park. We did a one-day trip during the salmon run to see the grizzlies. It was amazing.
Hand’s down, it was the one trip my family still talks about. You fly out of Anchorage and eventually transfer to a small float plane for the last leg. I still remember flying over the water on the approach to the lodge and thinking, “those sure are some huge rocks there at the shoreline.” Well, they weren’t rocks - there were bears in the bay! One of them stood up to watch our plane fly over.
After you get to the lodge and go through orientation, you walk out to an observation platform near the falls. There are bears everywhere – we saw at least 20, maybe as many as 30 or 40, fishing and fighting. It was incredible.
Of course, the price is pretty incredible too, and tickets for the bear sighting passages sell out quickly. I am SO GLAD we went.
@scout59: thank you! This is exactly the kind of adventure we would love! I am checking it out right now. 