Thread: Skagway Excursion Ideas

Ok folks.....anyone got any ideas of things we could see and do in Skagway.

Skagway's White Pass & Yukon Route is the
" Scenic Railway of the World"

Or so it's touted. My cousin did this excursion and said it's a must do for Skagway.

Here's a link. Have a look!
Skagway's White Pass & Yukon Scenic Railway

here is a write up i did about Skagway

the most famous attraction in Skagway is the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad. Its amazing. The scenery from the train is unbeleivable. There are several variations on tours you can do here. But the gist is that the train ride follows the Gold Rush Trail of 1898 and shows you how prospectors got from their starting point in Skagway to the gold rush camp area near the Canadian Border.

Skagway is also a great place to do a helicopter flightseeing or dog sledding trip. Keep in mind that Skagway and Juneau are your only chances on this cruise to do these excursions. They are both highly recommended and I wouldn't have any hesitation urging someone to do either trip.

You can also take a short ferry ride (about 20 mins) to the small town of Haines that also has a former military post there. A popular trip is to go to Haines and take a float trip on a raft to the Eagle Preserve.

alot of tours in Skagway also take you to a small village called Liarsville that is set up to look like a mining camp. you can see life through the eyes of a miner. you also can mine for your own gold. if you do it right, everyone will end up with gold flakes!

Skagway is also a great shopping town. The town itself is only a few square blocks wide and only has about 700 year round residents. So everythign is walkable.

There is also a free walking tour put on by the national park service here.

Alisa...I was just reading about "cariboucrossing"...where you can do a dog cart ride etc...have you heard of it by any chance.?

Thanks

Liz, I have kind of.

I know its located a bit outside of town. Its for people who want a dog sledding experience without the helicopter. But its also minus the snow as well. I beleive it costs a bit over $100 per person. Basically its Alaskan Husky dogs that pull a sled with wheels through the hills over the dirt. there's no snow, so they run over the regular ground. But also since you don't have to go find snow out in the mountains, its just a car ride to the camp rather than a helicopter ride.

I've heard of a couple of people who have done it. Some people like it and others don't its really hard to say. for some people they wanted the experience of meeting the dogs and doing some sort of dog sled ride. Others said that it wasn't worth it and is nothign like the real thing.

Its a mixed opinion thats for sure.

sorry I couldn't be of more help!

Alisa

I knew you would turn up trumps for me...you have such a great knowledge of Alaska...I really wish you were coming with us

I went to our local library recently...no books on Alaska...so they got one in for me from another branch...well....the book was printed 10 years ago.
I said to the librarian...emm..."do you have anything more recent please"...and her reply was..."oh no and I dont think Alaska had changed much in 10 years anyway"....so I replied..."Actually I think you will find it has"....and she replied..."well with the cold weather we are having just now that will help you for Alaska"!!....so I just had to reply "well actually it is not always cold in Alaska that is just what some folks think"!
She wasnt amused..but hey...neither was I

Thanks

Wow she wasn't very friendly or very knowledgeable!

Thats horrible that you weren't able to get more updated information!

I did see that you ordered the travel planner for Juneau though. Hopefully that helped.

Also you can go to the RCI website and check out the excursions list for what was offered this year and and what cost. I am sure that the cost may be different in 2 years but the excursions they offer should be similar. If you have more questions definitely post it here and I will try and give you all the information I can!

Alisa
I have also just ordered some info from Skagway Tourist Office

The Juneau info came very quickly...infact today I got a postcard with Helicopter Tour Company on it

I had to find a file to put everything in it now

Thanks

Here is a picture from the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad trip to the summit

if you're going to take a helicopter trip, you'll probably see views such as this of a hanging glacier...