Denali National Park tour- park shuttlebus vs. tour bus?

[labbie]

Looking for input anyone has on the tour bus options within Denali Park. We're deciding between the park's shuttle (about $52) vs. a private tour bus ($150+) to go all the way in to Kantishna. Both stop for photo ops, and from what we can tell, the main difference is the narration and the box lunch/drinks on the private tour and online reviews are evenly split. We're going in late August, so not too concerned about the park shuttle filling up if we get off at a spot and try hopping on the next one. 

Thanks for any input!

[GilliC]

We took the park bus, because from what we'd heard (and what we saw), the tour buses are pretty much the same. The narration on our bus was just fine, and the driver stopped for wildlife sightings in additional to the longer periodic rest/sightseeing stops. We just stayed on the same bus the whole trip, so I really don't know what the tour could have done differently to warrant the extra cost.

I have heard that some shuttle drivers provide very little narration, but a lot of people suggest that if that happens, you just stay at one of the stops and switch to the next shuttle instead. However, most people don't seem to have this problem. I'd imagine the people who choose to drive a national park shuttle tend to be like park rangers - pretty enthusiastic about what they're doing!

[labbie]

Feb 20, 2015 9:49:20 GMT -5 GilliC said:

We took the park bus, because from what we'd heard (and what we saw), the tour buses are pretty much the same. The narration on our bus was just fine, and the driver stopped for wildlife sightings in additional to the longer periodic rest/sightseeing stops. We just stayed on the same bus the whole trip, so I really don't know what the tour could have done differently to warrant the extra cost.

I have heard that some shuttle drivers provide very little narration, but a lot of people suggest that if that happens, you just stay at one of the stops and switch to the next shuttle instead. However, most people don't seem to have this problem. I'd imagine the people who choose to drive a national park shuttle tend to be like park rangers - pretty enthusiastic about what they're doing!

I appreciate your input. This is the way we are also leaning. As you mention, the option to get on a different bus is a plus in my book. By saving the $$,  we'll be able to book a bus for 2 days and it gives us flexibility to get on/off the 2nd day for a hike, a ranger program, or whatever.

Thanks!

[mpc]

I would go with the park buses. I can't imagine how the tour bus would give you that much more value. Getting off the bus for some unstructured hiking and then going back to the road to catch another bus was one of my favorite parts of the park.

[sunshinedaydreams]

I would probably do the shuttle bus as well. We were backcountry camping when we were there, so we took the camper bus, and even without narration, there's still a lot to see and take in. I don't really feel like we missed out on anything by not having narration. Pretty much all of the buses will stop at the main sights and any animal sightings.

We were there in the first week of September and the buses were still really, really crowded. With a camper bus pass we were able to catch a shuttle bus or a camper bus, and there were a couple of points where the shuttle buses were so full we had to wait for the next bus an hour or more later. The end of August/beginning of September is the shoulder season and the last few weeks before the shuttle buses stop running for the year, so lots of people are still trying to cram their trips in at that point. Not saying all that to deter you, but just to let you know what you might experience.

The only other thing I might consider is whether the private bus has comfy seats and you would want to pay for that. The ride to Kantishna and back is long. I think it's 6 hours one way if I remember right. The shuttle buses are old school buses, so they're the bench-style seats that aren't super comfy.


Kantishna is really awesome! We camped out there in Zone 43 for part of our time. That was where we saw the most wildlife of our whole trip. Don't miss getting off at Wonder Lake, especially if it's a clear day and you can see Denali reflected in the lake.

[G22]

We also took the park shuttle and were happy with it. Like someone else mentioned, we got some narration and they stopped for wildlife. We got to see a wolf just saunter down the road a few feet from the bus. The driver pulled it over and shut the bus off so as not to scare it so people could get a good look and pictures. Plus its hard to beat the scenery, even without narration.

[Alyssa]

I kick myself for not going into the park when we were up there. We drove all the way from Seward to Denali back in '01 and decided not to do the tour because my family didn't feel like riding on a bumpy dirt road. We spent the night at a lodge and the next morning we drove back to Anchorage. smh, what a waste. Definitely go for it, whatever route you choose, it's beautiful up there.

[labbie]

Thanks everyone, we're booking the shuttle bus all the way back to Kantishna, just so we have flexibility if weather's great to get off at Wonder Lake/elsewhere to hike around vs. staying on the bus for the full way in.
The money we're saving there by not doing the narrated tour will be put to good use doing some other type of excursion during our trip!