Date of Cruise Aug, 2018 Would recommend to other Special Needs Families? Comments Rode rail cars up White Pass while listening to speakers over the PA system and within our car. At the summit, the kids (less than 12 years old) were collected and placed in their own private kids car were they spent the rest of the journey with Kids Club staff. The kids participated in games and other activities while the adults were served champagne, sparkling cider, and snacks. Other than the cruise line staff knowing about our son, no special accommodations were requested or provided. Be aware that once the kids are placed in the private car, there is NO retrieving them until the end of the journey. Would recommend if children are interested in riding on a narrow-gauge railroad. Dog Sled Mysher s Camp Date of Cruise Jul, 2018 Duration (approx) 5.5 hrs Comments This was a GREAT excursion for my son with autism! It does not say it explicitly in the description, but it is the White Pass Railway but with a separate tour guide for just your train car and excursion. Longshot Lizzie was really great and gave us tons of information about the area and history while we were on the White Pass railway. Then we all went to a pretty cheesy tourist-trap looking "miner city" to pan for gold, but it was fun. We also got to see some sled dogs with their trainer/iditarod racer and watch them pull a sled, then hold/pet puppies. We had some time after to explore Skagway before sail away as well. The changing activities kept my son interested and engaged, and he had fun panning for gold. All of the excursion/tour staff were amazing with him as well. Dog Sled Mysher s Camp Date of Cruise Jul, 2018 Comments It was easy walking to vehicles and lookout points. Not wheelchair accessible. The tour kept my daughter s attention throughout and was very fun and enjoyable. Date of Cruise Jul, 2017 Duration (approx) 4.5 hrs Comments Wonderful exclusion. No special accommodations for special needs. There are restrooms in the train cars. Beautiful trip but it's long. My son did well but he fell asleep on the way back. You are able to get up and walk around. Eagle Peak Preserve and River Trip Date of Cruise Jun, 2016 Booked through Ship Duration (approx) 7 hrs Would recommend to other Special Needs Families? No
Comments Not recommended for children with autism. Might work for high functioning adults with autism. and Alaskan Dog Sled Experience Date of Cruise Jun, 2016 Duration (approx) 5 hrs Would recommend to other Special Needs Families? No Comments My son enjoyed holding the puppies at the musher's camp, but not the video and lecture you have to sit through first. This is the same sled dog camp on all the other excursions, nothing special, and it feels a bit touristy. Then we had a long ride in a tour bus and a long ride back in a train. I thought that we would see more going for the longer train ride, but I don't think it was worth it. We would have been happier picking just one aspect of this excursion and then having a leisurly walk around town. Grizzly Falls Zipline Tour CEL Date of Cruise Jul, 2015 Comments To get to the tour itself, it's a 40 minute bus ride and a 15 minute ride by "mog," which is an all terrain vehicle used by the military. Our guides were Sam and Kurt, who asked questions pertaining to the girls abilities and interests. One of our daughters was in full meltdown mode, but the guides stayed calm, watched out for everything, and counted the remaining zip lines for her. The other daughter loved the whole thing, and the guide started teaching her how to attach the equipment to the lines and kept her engaged with the activity. The tour concluded with a marshmallow roast with open fire. Glass Blowing Duration (approx) 2-3 hrs Comments Parents have to have ability to control autism individual because of very hot environment, but with that said staff worked well with our family and was extremely friendly Gold Panning/Sled Dogs/40 below Duration (approx) 3 Hrs Comments Colin was included as much or as little as he wanted to be. He especially liked meeting the sled dogs, and holding a puppy! White Pass Train Duration (approx) 4 Hrs Comments Yes it was perfect Skagway Train
Date of Cruise Jul 2013 Comments Our child really enjoyed the train ride. I would want other families to know it was loud and bumpy Green Jeep Tours Date of Cruise Jul, 2012 Duration (approx) All Day Rental Comments Awesome company. Great to work with. Provided snacks and detailed directions from Skagway to Emerald Lake Canada as well as sites to see around Skagway. The jeep we rented was a 4 person and worked well for us. The stop when you wanted was great. You could spend as much or as little time at a stop as you needed. White Pass Scenic Railway Date of Cruise Jul 2012 Duration (approx) 3.5 hrs Comments Very accommodating. This was a very nice train ride with beautiful scenery. The 2 tunnels were very dark, but weren't long. We were told from the beginning that we would be switching sides on the return trip for the opposite view, so no surprise there. Bottles of water were supplied, which was helpful. The only animals we saw were mountain goats. Our daughter is a 17 year old with autism and ADHD and enjoyed the ride-she wasn't crazy about the tunnels, or the heights; but she said she would go on the train again. Alaska Green Jeep Date of Cruise Jul, 2012 Duration (approx) 10 hrs Comments Fantastic!! They helped us plan our day with a private jeep. They helped us pick where to stop, made food and shopping recommendations and provided our choice of drinks with snacks. We were able to tour at our own pace and go where we wanted which was ideal for the youth with autism. We were able to let him hike and explore at his pace, run and roll in the sand dunes, and hang with the sled dogs and puppies Skagway Streetcar Tour Date of Cruise Jul 2012 Duration (approx) 2 hrs Comments Very accomodating.
Duration (approx) 3.5 Hrs Comments Train ride on a historic train through scenic countryside narrated by loudspeaker. It was well accommodated, however, I was not prepared for the seat switching that occurred at the top of the mountain. Since I was confused, my child was confused. If I had known that we would be standing up and switching sides, I could've prepared him for that better. Yukon Suspension Bridge, City And White Pass Railway Duration (approx) 5 Hrs Comments Most of the time is spent riding the train and bus. No activities were physically strenuous, which suited our son just fine. We rode in the third car behind the locomotive, which pulled in a lot of exhaust when the carriage door was opened. You have to open it if you want to go out to the area between carriages to take pictures because there is some spectacular scenery. Skagway By Helicopter Duration (approx) Not specified Comments If a child on the spectrum likes Helicopters and is not afraid of heights then this is a fun thing to so. Ryan is fascinated with helicopters and when we looked at the excursion list and saw the helicopter ride then we knew he would like it. On the day of the excursion, it was rainy weather and cloudy but Ryan still enjoyed the helicopter. We wanted to do other excursions on the list but the prices were a little high and the duration of some of the excursions would have been too long for Ryan. I would recommend excursions for families as each child is different and I think that there are enough options for families. White Pass Train And Bus And Video Comments We really had no issues. Peter was happy to look out the window. Comments Gorgeous views, but could be long for some as it lasts 3 hours. Train Ride Comments This was great. Just long enough, relaxing and the scenery was out of this world. Laura did great on this one!
Comments This was a 3 hour train ride which is exactly what our son with autism loves dearly. Train rides bring him great joy, so this was perfect for our whole family. Suspension Bridge & Klondike Fields Comments Beautiful pictures to take going and coming back from the Yukon suspension bridge. Rail To Frazier And Then Gold Mining Comments The rail trip was fantastic. Full view of the mountains because of the clear day!!! The mining town was sort of a disappointment but ok. Klondike Summit, Yukon Suspension Bridge & Gold Secrets Comments Nice motor coach tour with a local narrator. Scenery was amazing with many stops to take pictures. The suspension bridge was very well built with chain link fence above our heads. Our son didn t mind crossing it. There is just a platform on the other side, so you do need to make a round trip across the bridge which is over a raging river. No strollers or wheelchairs are allowed across the bridge however. The gold panning part would be fine for higher functioning. There was detailed instruction on how to do the panning which was already set up with preselected pay dirt, and then a boring tour of the machinery used in the dredging process. You get maybe $20 worth of gold shavings. There is also a movie you can see of the northern lights and other little tours of sled dogs, etc, but there is an additional cost. Since this excursion started at 8am, we still had time to go shopping in the town in the afternoon. It was nice to have a short walk from the ship into town