We layered up for our excursion, not certain how cold it would be down on the water (pockets full of scarves and hats and hand warmers). I had a belt bag under my layers (they told us we had to carry our passports off, still not sure why on that one - I guess in case of emergency), but that was it, no backpacks or extra stuff.

The boat we boarded had three decks (the first was completely enclosed, the second offered both indoor and outdoor space and then there was the third, which they only opened up once we got out to the glacier for viewing.

I’ll be honest, when we first boarded, everyone was jostling for space near the railings and it felt pretty crowded. I was a little concerned that the whole experience would be like this. But once they opened up the topmost deck there was a lot more breathing room near the railings.

Immediately after we boarded our boat, the Wonder started its slow return back down the arm of the fjord, away from the glacier.

Disney Wonder and Dawes Glacier in Alaska.

Girl looks at Disney Wonder and Alaskan glacier through binoculars.

Family looks off at Disney Wonder in Alaskan Fjord.

The Disney Wonder in Endicott Arm Alaska.

Family looks at alaskan wilderness from boat excursion.

I love this kid.. she waves at everyone, everywhere, and she always has.

Tween waves at a boat from her Alaska fjord excursion.

These pictures don’t really do it justice. The scale and color of the glacier are so much more breathtaking in person.

Boat is dwarfed by the size of Dawes Glacier.

Tourists take photos of Dawes Glaciers from their boat excursion in Alaska.

Woman looks through binoculars at Dawes Glacier.

And soon thereafter the kids wandered inside and found the hot chocolate. From this point forward, I don’t think there’s another photo of Penelope without a cup in her hands. And we found the glacier-ritas. My favorite drink of the trip. So crisp, and yanno, it didn’t melt nearly as fast as a drink does in Florida or the Caribbean. ;)

Tourists enjoy glacier-ritas on an Alaska boat excursion.

Boy drinks hot chocolate on a boat in Alaska.

Girl walks around boat with her hot cocoa.

Glacier-rita with Dawes Glacier in the background.

Girl drinks hot chocolate on a fjord in Alaska.

Our guides came around with glacier ice they fished out of the water. The same ice that was in our drinks. It cracked me up that “feeling” the ice was a thing. Like, it feels like… ice.

Excursion guide shows kids Alaska glacier ice.

We spent our time slowly turning in circles in front of the glacier and even got lucky enough to see a chunk of it calve off, which was incredibly cool.

Up close view of Alaskan glacier in Endicott Arm.

Girl reacts to a glacier calving in Alaska.

View of glacier from top deck of a boat excursion.

Looking through glass windows at Alaskan wilderness.

Dawes glacier viewed from top deck of boat.

After an hour they closed the top deck back off and we started moving away from Dawes Glacier.

Girl holds her father's arm and looks out Alaskan fjord.

Boy eats a doughnut on a boat in Alaska.

Tourists look out over Alaskan glacier and fjord in Endicott Arm.

It started to rain a bit (a heavy mist settled in on us like a blanket) soon after the glacier was out of view, and the majority of our fellow cruisers took this as a sign that the excursion was over and went inside. Or maybe they were just really cold? I honestly don’t know, but all of a sudden it was as if we had the back of that boat nearly to ourselves. And this was the transcendent moment for me. When Alaska outdid itself and swallowed us up with its majestic landscape.

Girl sips on hot coca in a majestic Alaskan fjord.

Father and son pose for a photo in Alaska.

DIsney Wonder cruise ship sails through Alaskan fjord, looking tiny.

Enjoying an Alaskan fjord excursion from a boat.

Mother and daughter pose on a boat in the Alaskan fjords.

We got the Wonder back in our sights (as seen in a couple of the photos above), but only for a second, before bearing right and heading up a smaller arm of the fjord as it disappeared from view. Out here we saw a beautiful waterfall and more gorgeous teal waters.

Boy looks off at waterfalls in Alaska wilderness.

Photo of a girl and her binoculars in Alaska.

Man points out wildlife by a cascade in Alaska.

Tween girl dances on the back of a boat in Alaska.

With the cascade in our rearview, we sped back up to catch our ship. We danced across the back of that boat and had a grand time laughing and just marveling over the scenery. Lucas came and went a couple times from the interior of the upper deck. He’d warm up, then come back out for a bit, and then go back and warm up again.

Holding the handrail as a boat moves through Alaskan fjord.

Girl dances on the back of a boat excursion in Alaska.

Kids sit in the interior of a boat in Alaska.

View of Alaska fjord from inside a boat.

Siblings look tiny posing on the back of a boat in Alaskan wilderness.

Eventually, we caught up to the Wonder and had to say goodbye to our private boat ride through the fjords.

View of the Disney Wonder from a boat excursion in Alaska.

View of the Disney Wonder from inside an excursion boat.

Excursion guides look for wildlife from boat in Alaska.

View of the Disney Wonder through the glass windows of an excursion boat in Alaska.

Siblings are punch drunk on a boat in Alaska.

Siblings wait to debark their Alaskan boat excursion.

Remember when I said there were a few moments on this trip that immediately sent me through the portal of time to another place and moment? We were once on a different boat halfway around the world in Paris, feeling similarly punch drunk and fulfilled:

Siblings on a boat on the Seine in Paris.

I absolutely loved the late afternoon time of our excursion. Being the last boat out meant we got to experience the slow glide all the way up to the glacier from the comfort of the ship. We boarded our smaller boat in the shadow of the glacier and then got to speed through the fjords back to our ship. It was perfect.

Worth noting… if you choose this time slot and you have main dining, you will miss dinner. But the good news is, if you’re on a similar itinerary to ours, the dinner you miss is the third meal in the same dining room. So you really aren’t missing much - it was well worth it in my opinion.

The misty weather of our return trip turned to a heavy rain shortly after we boarded the Wonder and the evening’s Frozen festivities were rescheduled for midday on our final sea day. We were kind of thankful for this at the time, because we were all exhausted, needed showers and had missed dinner. So Brett and I went and loaded up heaping plates of chicken tenders and fries, and we had a little family picnic in our stateroom reliving our favorite moments of the day. It was perfect.

Up next: We zipline over waterfalls in Skagway!

The Last Frontier: A Disney Wonder Cruise Report - June 2025 (Day 03 Part 02: Glacier Explorer Excursion)