DIY Mendenhall Glacier & Nugget Falls: What We Did, What It Cost, and Why It Worked

We had researched several ways of getting there before the cruise:

• Commercial transportation and excursions
• Lyft or Uber
• Taxis
• Rental or Turo-type options
• Juneau’s public bus as a fallback

What we didn’t have was a reservation.

That distinction matters.

We weren’t showing up with no idea what to do. We had done enough research to understand our possibilities, but we deliberately left the final decision open.

That works for us because we genuinely enjoy winging it. We like knowing our options and then deciding what makes sense once we’re there.

It also meant we had to be comfortable with the answer potentially being, “Mendenhall isn’t happening today.”

Someone who would be really disappointed if they missed Mendenhall probably shouldn’t use our approach.

For the bigger question of which Alaska excursions may justify spending more, see Alaska Cruise Excursions Guide: Which Ones Are Worth the Money and Which Would We Skip?.

Before leaving the ship, we had seen Lyft at around $30.

Once we were actually off the ship and checking near the port, the price had jumped to roughly $60 one way.

There was also a transportation option near the port that would have been around $200 round trip for the four of us.

Sixty dollars for the Lyft wasn’t enough to make us give up. We still thought Mendenhall might be worth it.

But we weren’t ready to hit the button yet.

Instead, we walked a couple of blocks farther into downtown Juneau and checked Lyft again.

This time it was about $40, although there was roughly a 20-minute wait.

That was the moment we decided we were going.

We requested the ride through the Lyft app and found a nearby bar where we could have a quick drink while we waited.

By about 3:00 p.m. we were downtown, and around 3:30 p.m. we arrived at Mendenhall Glacier.

Our takeaway: if you have enough time and you’re comfortable with the possibility that nothing changes, it may be worth getting away from the immediate cruise-port traffic and checking rideshare pricing again.

That doesn’t mean fares will always drop. Ours did.

And if ours hadn’t, we were prepared to make a different decision.

During the drive, Vinni pointed out sights and eagles and told us more about Juneau.

Naturally, we also started talking about how we were going to get back.

We asked whether we could text him directly when we were ready to leave.

He was clear that he might not be available, so we did not leave the car thinking we had guaranteed transportation back.

We were comfortable with that.

Our thinking was:

• First choice: See whether Vinni was available.
• Backup: Request another Lyft and wait if necessary.
• Worst-case backup: Use Juneau’s public bus.

That last option mattered because it meant we weren’t relying completely on a rideshare driver returning.

Arranging the return directly with Vinni outside Lyft is not something we normally do, and we’re not suggesting that everyone should handle a rideshare that way. It happened to work well for us, but travelers should make their own decisions about transportation arrangements and personal comfort.

The hike turned out to be one of the best parts of our day.

It was not difficult for us at all.

There was very little elevation change, the crowds weren’t bad, and when we reached Nugget Falls it felt like we were standing almost right up against it.

The U.S. Forest Service describes Nugget Falls Trail as about 0.8 mile one way and low-gradient, which lines up closely with what the hike felt like to us.

We spent a lot of the time taking photos and video rather than trying to check off every possible thing around Mendenhall.

From arrival to departure, we were there about two hours — roughly 3:30 p.m. until 5:30 p.m.

That was plenty of time for what we did.

We didn’t feel rushed.

We didn’t pay an admission or day-use fee during our visit because we went to Nugget Falls and never entered the Visitor Center or the other fee areas.

That raised a question afterward: Were we supposed to pay something?

According to the U.S. Forest Service’s current Mendenhall fee information, the day-use fee is $5 per person for visitors age 16 and older. The pass is required for the Visitor Center and specified fee areas including the Pavilion, Photo Point Trail, Steep Creek, restrooms, and bus shelter.

The Forest Service specifically lists Nugget Falls Trail as exempt from the pass requirement, along with the parking area and several other trails.

So we wouldn’t describe what we did as finding a way to “avoid” an entrance fee.

We simply spent our Mendenhall time in an area that does not currently require the day-use pass.

The Forest Service proposed increasing the day-use fee from $5 to $15 in 2026, but its current fee information still lists $5. Because fees can change, we’d check the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center page before a future visit.

Next time, we’d make a point of visiting the Visitor Center. We had enough time and think that would have rounded out the experience.

We never needed to test Lyft for the return trip and never needed the city bus.

When we initially texted Vinni about returning, we proposed $50 for the ride back and he agreed.

Mark ultimately gave him $60.

Between the outbound Lyft, tips, and the return with Vinni, our total transportation cost came to approximately:

$110 total for four people

That works out to roughly $27.50 per person.

One couple essentially covered the outbound Lyft while the other covered the return, so the transportation cost was pretty evenly split between us.

Compared with the approximately $70-per-person transportation-only options we remember seeing before the trip, we were very happy with how it worked out.

But we would not plan a future trip assuming we’ll reproduce that exact price.

Rideshare pricing changes. Driver availability changes. Cruise traffic changes.

The useful lesson isn’t “Mendenhall costs $27.50 per person.”

The lesson is that leaving ourselves flexible allowed us to react to the transportation options that existed that afternoon.

The issue wasn’t the bus itself.

It was the additional walking.

Our pre-trip research had us expecting roughly 1.5 miles of walking between the closest practical public-bus stop and the Mendenhall area.

We don’t have a problem walking that distance.

But doing it on the way out, hiking to Nugget Falls and back, and then adding another long walk to the bus afterward could have made the day much more tiring than we wanted.

So for us:

• Bus one way if necessary? Fine.
• Bus both directions plus Nugget Falls? Probably not our first choice.

That is a good example of why the cheapest transportation isn’t automatically the best value. Time, energy, weather, and how much walking you want to do all matter.

If you’re considering the bus, check the current Capital Transit routes and schedules for your sailing date rather than relying on an old route plan.

• About 2:30 p.m. — Left Norwegian Encore
• Around 3:00 p.m. — Reached downtown and checked Lyft again
• About $40 / 20-minute wait — Requested Lyft and had a quick drink nearby
• Around 3:30 p.m. — Arrived at Mendenhall Glacier
• 3:30–5:30 p.m. — Mendenhall and Nugget Falls
• Around 5:30 p.m. — Texted Vinni when we were ready to leave
• About 20 minutes later — Vinni returned

Afterward, we still had time for the Red Dog Saloon in Juneau before returning to Encore.

We even had enough time after boarding to grab a snack at The Local and watch some entertainment in the Atrium.

That breathing room mattered.

On a much shorter Juneau port call, we would look at this very differently.

For more context on how Juneau fits into this particular seven-night sailing, see Norwegian Encore Alaska Itinerary Guide: What the Week Feels Like.

If we repeated the day, we would probably handle Mendenhall almost exactly the same way.

The bigger change would be afterward.

We’d still go to Red Dog Saloon, but we’d probably stop for a drink and the experience, then eat somewhere else.

That’s a fairly small adjustment considering how loosely planned the day was.

Our approach is probably a good fit if:

• You are comfortable changing plans in real time.
• You are willing to watch rideshare pricing and wait.
• You have enough port time to absorb delays.
• You have researched backup transportation.
• You are okay with potentially not going at all if the numbers or timing stop making sense.
• You prefer flexibility over having the day scheduled for you.

A structured shuttle or excursion may make more sense if:

• Getting to Mendenhall is a must-do and you’d be really disappointed to miss it.
• You want transportation arranged in advance.
• Waiting for a rideshare would make you anxious.
• Mobility or walking distance is a concern.
• You have a shorter port day.
• You want a more expanded experience than simply getting yourself to Mendenhall and exploring on your own.
• You want a guide, narration, additional stops, or activities that you cannot easily recreate independently.

There isn’t one universally better answer.

The DIY version fit us because we were prepared to shrug and do something else if it didn’t work.

That’s very different from someone who has dreamed about Mendenhall for years and considers it the main reason for choosing their Alaska itinerary.

Our approach would be:

• Check the price near the port.
• If it feels high but still potentially acceptable, walk a little farther into downtown if your timing and mobility allow.
• Check again.
• Then make the decision based on the new price, wait time, remaining port time, weather, and how badly you want to go.

In our case:

• Near the ship: roughly $60
• A couple of blocks into downtown: roughly $40 with a 20-minute wait

The second number was enough for us to commit.

Another day could produce exactly the opposite result.

That’s why we’d never build the entire plan around getting the same fare we did.