I had promised my granddaughter, Aspen, a trip after she finished the eighth grade. In January of this year, I began looking for a place to take her. After much searching, I called Adventure Life to see if they did Alaskan trips. I had taken three trips with Adventure Life and felt good about traveling with them. I was excited to learn that they did Alaskan Dream Cruises, which are with small ships. My youngest son had gotten a travel bonus at work and I convinced him to go with us. Finally, after anticipating for five months, my oldest son, Cord, drove us to Austin on Friday, June 21st, to catch our flight to Seattle. We eased through security at the airport although I was randomly picked to have the palms of my hands scanned. Our flight left at 6:34 and we landed in Seattle at 8:36. We were in a different time zone, two hours earlier than central time. We waited about 20 minutes for a shuttle to take us to our room at Sleep Inn. We were very hungry so we walked across the way to an Ihops beside the hotel. We got to bed about 11:30 and got up at 3 AM in order to catch the shuttle to the airport. Our flight to Sitka was to leave at 6:15. The plane departed on time and it was two hours to Juneau. We stayed on the plane as some people got off and others got on. The flight from Juneau to Sitka took about 22 minutes. An Alaskan Cruise representative drove us to totem Square where we would spend the night. We drove over the O'Connell Bridge which connects the town of Sitka on Baranof Island to the airport. Before 1971, when the bridge was completed, the commute was achieved by a ferry service. Now, we were three hours earlier than our time at home in the Hill Country. I immediately fell in love with Sitka. Sitka, formerly known as New Archangel under Russian rule is situated on the west side of Baranof Island. It is a quaint and beautiful seaside community, considered by many to be the most beautiful seaside town in southeast Alaska and I would not disagree. On the east, I saw majestic snow-capped mountains. Looking around, I saw stately spruce trees and fishing boats. I could tell this town was immersed in history and culture. Kitka was home to the Tlingit Indians long before the Russians or Americans ever trod here. We walked to Victoria's Hotel and Restaurant as we were very hungry and not many restaurants were open. It was very crowded so we walked round a little and later came back there to eat. With our appetites satiated, we shopped some. It was misting a little off and on. Aspen found a cane for me to get for Cord in a most wondrous fur store. The furs were splendid and I found sea otter fur to be he softest that I have ever touched and also very expensive. We then walked back to the hotel and checked in. Later, we walked up the beautiful stone steps to Castle Hill. This is the historical site of Tlingit and Russian forts. In 1867, the Russian flag was lowered and the American flag raised, marking the transfer of Alaska to the U.S. It is now a National Historic Landmark and there are no buildings there today. Toward evening, we went back to the hotel and ate there. I had a hamburger on a potato bun and it was one of the best I have ever eaten. Knowing we had a full day ahead of us , we retired early. Tomorrow, we would tour some of the sites with our guide and board our ship, the Baranof Dream.
The agent had great response to questions and coordinated well to create an itinerary that met our expectations.
Bob Sunshine
1 day ago
Very responsive to all questions
Teresa Cardoso
2 days ago
Kelly and Rhenee were excellent to work with on planning our trip. The logistics all worked smoothly and everyone was friendly and on time. Our accommodations were very good, particularly the incredible Patagonia Camp in Torres del Paine! Our guides on every excursion were outstanding and made the hikes memorable! Overall we had a wonderful trip with incredible memories!
Scott Gibson
2 days ago
Adventure Life is definitely a first-class safari tour company, and our representative was Franny Friesz. First of all, she responded immediately after we contacted Adventure Life. We told Franny that we had never been on a safari, and she was more than eager to offer a mountain of information about the trip. She informed us fully about all the ups, downs, and all arounds! She even prepared a number of packages for us to review -- even after we made changes to the areas we wanted to explore. Friendly, helpful, professional, and extremely knowledgeable -- these words describe Franny, and what a wonderful trip she prepared! We couldn't have asked for better service than Franny of Adventure Life. We HIGHLY recommend her and her outstanding company! Bon Voyage!
Prima Burke
3 days ago
The staff at Adventure Life made planning my family's trip to the Galapagos Islands as easy as possible. They listened to what we were hoping to experience and made thoughtful suggestions about how to accomplish our vacation goals while meeting the needs of travelers ages 17-76! They patiently answered questions and follow up questions in the months leading up to the trip. They helped us trouble shoot and customize the trip in every way possible. The logistics involved in traveling from Boston to the Galapagos are innumerable. The Adventure Life staff helped us arrange every detail and the team they assembled in the Galapagos was tremendous. I have never done a trip this big before and after working with Adventure Life this time--would not hesitate one second in working with them again.