Could Have Done on Our Own (Alaska)

Author: gwebsterg
Date of Trip: June 2007

We had a marvellous Cruise with Regent on Mariner of the Sea from Vancouver to Seward, for my 60th birthday. We decided to add one of their land tours for 5 days. My first suggestion is do it the other way round. The luxury of the Regent cruise is so superior to any hotel in Alaska it spoils the trip doing it afterwards.

My second suggestion is organise itself , save money and be free of irritating tour guides like ours, a teacher who could not keep quiet, and had to boss everyone. I may add my wife and I are retired teachers-we have had a lifetime of moaning , and we really found our lady a pain, so much so we sat at rear of bus and tread to ignore all her entreaties to play games.

Denali NP was fantastic -we saw all 5 great animals on our Park bus trip-a grizzly bear who accompanied the bus for a while! a wolf chasing deer; mouse, elk, denali sheep; and the snow capped Mt McKinley in sunshine. But we could have booked that ourselves, the tour added nothing.

Similarly the train ride Denali to Anchorage was a highlight dining a and riding in the domed observation car (Gold service?) was an unforgettable experience. But you can buy it yourself. We were 22 on a 40 seater coach so had space, and the Hawaian driver was good at the loading and unloading of bags. Let me be fair I have not been on an organised holiday before and will not go again. We like our liberty too much.

Alaska though, yes we will return, if she was not so cold we would live there. so beautiful and freedom is in the air.