Haines or Skagway?

Well, we went to Skagway because the drive would be shorter in the long run. Wanted to ferry to Haines for a day, then Juneau for a day, but could get no reservations in Haines because of the state fair. So we parked the TC in the ferry lot, flew to Juneau for two nights, then rode the ferry back to Skagway, camped another night, and left there Monday morning. Stayed at he Alaskan Hotel and Bar, which was an adventureby itself lol. Sorry we missed Haines, but making plans to fly back to Juneau sometime and charter a boat, to explore the waterway and towns. Watching the cruise ship lemmings was a learning experience. No cruises for us.

But thanks for the thoughts. They helped give us the courage to make trip...

Haines we spend 5 days there when we got off ferry from Bellingham. One day in Skagway was enough for us, lots of Jewelry Stores owned by Cruise ship companies.

Have fun Betsy

Thank you for the detailed replies. We'll be pulling out of Tok in an hour or so. We'll let you all know how it went.

The lot at Skagway has loads of parking and lots of people leave their vehicles there for a few days when they go to Juneau or elsewhere. Juneau, though, is a place where you'll really want a vehicle - the comments about a dually pickup being a problem only apply to a few touristy blocks of downtown, IMO.

I would second what Joe said about Juneau not being the place for a large dually....not sure if you meant to just go to Juneau and walk from there or if you meant to drop your camper and take the truck in, but the roads to/from Juneau are just fine, but maneuvering around Juneau would be troublesome, not impossible, just troublesome with a big pickup.

I would think either town would work, but with Haines being more of a laid back town, it might be easier to leave it there. Have heard that the Hitch-em-up campground has some dry parking where you can park a rig for a few days for a fee. Or stay at the Ocean Side CG and leave your rig at your site for the time you will be in Juneau. You can then walk to the ferry landing, and rent a car and hotel it in Juneau. Lots to do and see in Juneau for a few days.

In Skagway, I would get a site t Pullen CG and leave the rig there. Walk ons the ferry are easy to get and not at all costly. A large dually pickup would not be my choice for a vehicle to run around in Juneau, so I would rent a car for the time I was there. Juneau tends to only get busy and crowded in the winter when the legislature is in session.

We were in Skagway in late May. We did not see any large parking areas near the ferry terminal to leave an RV and TV. I'd contact the ferry ticketing office to see what they have to say about both locales.

BTW...we've been to Valdez, Seward, Homer, Denali NP, and of course Anchorage. Our workamp commitment prevented us from going on to Fairbanks when at Denali. We hope to make a run to Fairbanks for 5 days with a side trip to the Arctic Circle. Also need to get back to either Homer or Valdez to go halibut fishing. The 3 days we had available to fishing in Homer, our charter canceled due to very high seas.