Alaska Itinerary...How does this sound ?

Hi All,

So we have today finally booked with Princess for a 7 day cruise from 5th Sept to 12th Sept 2018 going South from Anchorage to Vancouver.

The rest of itinerary

30th Aug Fly London to Seattle

31st Aug Fly from Seattle to Anchorage

1sr Sept Explore Anchorage

2nd Get early morning train to Denali

2nd-5th Sept Stay in Denali

5th Sep Get train back to Anchorage

5th-12th Sept Cruise

12th Sept Fly from Vancouver to London

I just wondered if someone would be kind enough to critique this for me to see if it sounds sensible or any glaring mistakes/ better ways of doing this kind of trip.

Thanks Lou

If you have more time I would spend a couple of days in Vancouver if this would be your first time visiting there and you have the time to do that.

Keith

We have time either side so can add a day or 2 either side.

Thanks

Lou

On Sept 5 the itinerary shows that you are on the train from Denali to Anchorage, AND, transferring to your cruise ship. Not possible.

- the train is an 8 hr trip, noon ish to 8pm

- Princess departs from Whittier so you need to factor in time for that transfer. Usually need to be on board by about 6pm

p.s. the Park Connection Bus is another option between Anc and Denali. Much quicker and has 2 departures a day.

Hi maple leaves,

Thanks for your kind reply. So a better option would be a train to Denali and a bus back to get the ship. Any idea what times of day the buses go (and the trains come to that)

Many thanks

Lou

Found them. On the way back to Anchorage to get on the ship would we get off at the museum or the airport.

Also is there some where in Anchorage that stores luggage so that we don't have to take it to Denali.

Thanks

Just thinking would it make more sense to get to Anchorage the day before just incase the bus brakes down or anything happens.

Likewise I wonder if Princess cruises are likely to be running a bus we could pay to get on.

Thanks

ALASKA RAILROAD https://www.alaskarailroad.com/ride-a-train/schedules

PARK CONNECTION BUS http://www.alaskacoach.com/schedule/

Your transfer to the ship can be by train, Park Connection Bus, cruiseline transfer, or independent transfer (such as this https://alaskacruisetransfer.com/rates/ )

Your current itinerary looks like this:

8/30 fly London - Seattle

8/31 fly Sea- Anc (Alaska Airlines flies this route almost hourly)

9/1 explore Anchorage

9/2 train to Denali, 8:15am - 3:40pm

9/3 day in Denali

9/4 train to Anchorage, 12:30pm - 8pm

9/5 transfer to ship, leaves Anchorage around 2 or 3pm depending on how you travel

If this is all the time you have I think you need to pencil out a few other options, like flying Lon-Anc ( a 15 hr day but it's done and you're in Anc to recover instead of losing a day in Seattle).

Play with the train and bus schedules. At worst you could ride the bus Denali- Anc - Whittier all in one day, but that's a lot of time on a bus especially when you were on the bus for 8hrs at Denali the day before.

I don't know all of your reasons for that itinerary...it looks pretty good, tho other posts reveal adjustments that need to be made.

Mine....fly LHR>ANC (Icelandair, Condor) and eliminate the day of connections you have listed for Seattle.

Hi Maple, Time isn't an issue we can bend and change the plans 100%.

When considering time, convenience and cost If it were you would you go Seattle or Anchorage to start with ??

Do this look more sensible. The 30th looks busy but we may be leaving on 29th if we need to

Thur 30th Aug Fly from London to Seattle Fri 30th Aug Fly from Seattle to Anchorage Fri 30th Aug Arrive in Anchorage Sat 1st Spend day looking around Anchorage Sat 1st Stay overnight in Anchorage Sun 2nd Get train early in morning to Denali Mon 3rd Stay in Denali fior 3 nights (Sun, Mon, Tue) Tue 4th

Wed 5th Sept Get Bus from Denali to Anchorage Wed 5th Sept Board Ship Wed 12th Sept Leave Ship Wed 12th Sept Fly from Vancover to London Wed 12th Sept Possible stay in hotel in Gatwick

Is there any transport you can get directly from Denali to the ship ?

Does this make more sense ??

8/29/30 fly London - Seattle

8/30 fly Sea- Anchorage

9/31 explore Anchorage, Stay in Anchorage

9/1 train to Denali, 8:15am - 3:40pm

9/2 day in Denali

9/3 day in Denali

9/4 bus to Anchorage, 7:00am

9/4 Stay Night in Anchorage

9/5 transfer to ship, leaves Anchorage around 2 or 3pm depending on how you travel

The 30th and the 5th will be loooong travel days; London to Anc will be a minimum of 15 hrs, and the bus from Denali to Whittier is 7am to 5pm (with stops) . And if you're coming from Cornwall, that's even more travel.

No need to decide today !!! take some time to look at all your options.

I will say though ..... the fall colors will be spectacular at Denali at that time! And the bull moose will be gathering for the rut so you should have several sightings along the park road, esp within the first 10 miles.

OK so perhaps a start on the 29th would be better. We are planning on getting the bus back to Anchorage the day before we embark (on the 4th) to break up the pain a bit

Did realise we had a further long journey from Anchorage to Whitter. Blimey !!

Would you go from the UK to Seattle or straight to Anchorage ??

Thanks again. Don't you ever get fed up with us numpties..lol

Thanks

Next thought is where to stay at the Denali Park.

Any thoughts anyone please ??

Is there any transport you can get directly from Denali to the ship ?

The Park Connection Bus.

Leaves Denali hotels around 7am, arrives at the Anc Museum at 1:30pm. Leaves the Museum at 3pm, arrives Whittier at 5pm.

http://www.alaskacoach.com/schedule/Park-Connection-Schedule-Rates.pdf

Whittier isn't that far away distance wise, but you have to go thru a long tunnel that is only open once an hour in each direction. (it's shared by trains AND vehicles)

Is driving a car not an option for you ? My cousin has come over a few times from the UK to visit Alaska with me. When she saw how easy it was to get around she was even comfortable enough to drive the rented motorhome. Give it some thought ..... it would give you more flexibility with your time AND gives you acccess to more lodging options at Denali. Without a car you'll need to find lodging that will take you to/from the train and to/from the park entrance.

Driving is definitely an option. I assume I could get a car from Anchorage and simply drop it off when I finish with it in Whitter. Would I need it when I am at Denali, are most places drive to ??

Did you see my other post about which flight options you would choose.

Thanks again (and again)

Just wondered if anybody has done the sums of hiring a car compared to trains, buses and transport to Whitter.

There is only one car rental company in Whittier, AVIS, so if you do a one-way rental car it will have to be AVIS and it is costly due to the drop off fee. But the convenience can make it worthwhile esp if you have limited time.

A RT rental car out of Anchorage can be quite reasonable. A few weeks ago I priced ENTERPRISE at the Int'l Airport Rd office at $35 a day. So you'll need to do the math for one-way vs RT, both for the cost and the time factor.

Sorry for being dumb...RT...Return ??

A one-way train ticket to Denali is $167 per person and thats Adventure class, not Goldstar

.

A RT rental car from Enterprise for Sat - Tues nite will be about $200. Plus $35pp for the Anc-Whittier transfer, or $50pp if you want to include a stop at the Wildlife Center

An AVIS one-way rental for Sat- Wed will be $400-$500.

(car costs are a guess since the actual dates aren't available at this time. I used late Aug at Enterprse and early Sept for Avis)

With a car you'll have lots of lodging options available at Denali ..... B&B's, cabins, small hotels, inns. A place with a kitchenette will help for simple b'fasts, sandwiches, snacks. Much cheaper than 3 meals a day at restaurants. The Denali Park Hotel is a clean no frills place closeby. or maybe you want a cabin , like McKinley Creekside? http://www.a1cms.com/_dcc/accommodations/

Sorry for being dumb...RT...Return ??

yes, return

Someone called Carrentals.com are doing a Mitsubushi Mirage for 24.27 $ per day.

Pick up from Anchorage Downtown 906 E 5th Ave, Anchorage, AK 99501 and drop pff the same place.

Would that do it or would I need something bigger or different. There are 2 of us.

Thanks

Someone called Carrentals.com are doing a Mitsubushi Mirage for 24.27 $ per day.

 

Pick up from Anchorage Downtown 906 E 5th Ave, Anchorage,AK99501 and drop pff the same place.

Would that do it or would I need something bigger or different. There are 2 of us.

Thanks

It will be fine for 2 of you. (a car eliminates your luggage storage issue as well)

I always book the cheapest car I can find which is usually the smallest. Often I get an upgrade so fingers crossed.

As long as there is no cancel fee, book NOW for the best deal you can find. And keep checking back ... it might get cheaper ! Advice .....keep a copy of the reservation to take with you, in case they say that cheap rate was an error.