3 days in and around Anchorage, what do you think of this itinerary?

[radhak]

I'll throw in a couple of pennies...

 

You're basically allocating all of your time in southcentral Alaska to sitting in a car or on a bus. Is that really what you want?

 

There's one additional factor that I'm not sure has been brought up - weather. In early June there are no guarantees - zip, nada - that you'll actually see Mt. McKinley on a trip to Denali NP. Over half the visitors to the national park never see the peak - it creates its own weather, never mind the weather it borrows from elsewhere. How would you feel if you drove, groggy, five or six hours (frankly through rather uninspiring scenery for the most part - just forest on both sides of the road) only to hear those famous words, "Ya shoulda been here yesterday?"

 

Let me pose a small though experiment. You arrive at oh-dark-thirty (except, in June dark it ain't.) You go to a motel with a shuttle from the airport. You sleep until, oh, 8 AM (that will be noon for you and it's impossible for anyone over the age of 19 to sleep later. Oh wait.) You get up and take the shuttle back to the airport where you pick up the cars. You pick up the humans at the hotel and head down the Seward Highway to... Seward. Fifteen minutes after leaving the airport you'll be on Turnagain Arm, one of the most beautiful roads in North America. Pull off at Girdwood and ride the tram at the Alyeska resort up to the "roundhouse" for stunning views of the mountains and water. Stop at the wildlife conservation center at Portage, then stop again at Exit Glacier as you approach Seward. Boom, in one day you've been on a remarkable drive, have walked on the snow, maybe walked to a glacier, seen all kinds of wildlife, and have ended up in an interesting little town. Before you go to bed, check out the weather forecast for Monday (for Anchorage, which can be different from Seward's.)

 

The next day, take a Kenai Fjords cruise, then drive that evening back to Anchorage. Marine mammals, fantastic scenery (that won't be replicated during the cruise) and no chance of being weathered out.

 

Assuming the forecast that you saw on Friday was for good weather, Monday morning call Rust's or Spernak's and see if they can take you up to Denali for a fly-by sightseeing trip. If - and only if - the weather's favorable, seeing Denali from a light plane is an incredible experience. It literally fills the sky.

 

If this works, you wouldn't need a car for the Monday (assuming you're taking a cruise transfer or the train to Whittier) so you've offset the flightseeing cost slightly (and the cheaper hotels in Anchorage and Seward will also have helped.) But you'll have seen "the mountain," seen wildlife, glaciers, and some incredible scenery, all in rapid order but maintaining some sort of creature comfort. More importantly, you'll have only spent something like six hours behind the wheel or on a bus, vs. something close to 18 hours with your original plan.

 

Just a suggestion.

 

Wow - are you a tour guide or tour consultant? You should be! Earlier posts had already gotten me thinking, and the detail in your post has me re-working our plans (subject to approval of course) !

 

I see myself following all your suggestions, other than maybe the Kenai Fjords cruise - with the 7-day cruise itself the following week, I don't want the party getting 'cruise-fatigue' (and my wife is rather prone to sea-sickness). This, despite me getting the value of that suggestion - the landscape and wildlife sights would be different and look tempting.

 

But after some reading up, I'm hoping to spend more time at the Exit Glacier - maybe a guided tour or hike (these guys look promising - similar to the micaguides vbmom suggested, but closer to Seward).

 

So it might look like this :

- Saturday morning, roam Anchorage

- Post lunch, rent cars (no need to go to airport, there are agencies right opposite the hotel)

- Drive to Seward

- take our time to enjoy the scenery

- stop at Girdwood, ride the tram

- visit the Wildlife Conservation Center

- get closer to Exit Glacier, check into hotel (don't see hotels much cheaper in Seward either, but that's okay)

- Sunday morning take one of the available tours/hikes onto Exit Glacier

- Then, we either stay over Sunday night and visit Alaska Sea Life, or Seavey's Dog Sleds,

- or head back to Anchorage and visit stuff around there on Monday.

 

 

 

Having said that, I mentioned Seward early on in the thread as well.

 

And thank you (and the others) for that suggestion. The much less driving would be a huge plus.

[frugaltravel]

I see myself following all your suggestions, other than maybe the Kenai Fjords cruise - with the 7-day cruise itself the following week, I don't want the party getting 'cruise-fatigue' (and my wife is rather prone to sea-sickness). This, despite me getting the value of that suggestion - the landscape and wildlife sights would be different and look tempting.

 

The Kenai Fjords tour will be totally different from what you see on your cruise ship. You won't get nearly as close to marine wildlife or a glacier on your cruise ship as you will on the Kenai Fjords tour.

[Gardyloo]

So it might look like this :

- Saturday morning, roam Anchorage

- Post lunch, rent cars (no need to go to airport, there are agencies right opposite the hotel)

- Drive to Seward

- take our time to enjoy the scenery

- stop at Girdwood, ride the tram

- visit the Wildlife Conservation Center

- get closer to Exit Glacier, check into hotel (don't see hotels much cheaper in Seward either, but that's okay)

- Sunday morning take one of the available tours/hikes onto Exit Glacier

- Then, we either stay over Sunday night and visit Alaska Sea Life, or Seavey's Dog Sleds,

- or head back to Anchorage and visit stuff around there on Monday.

 

I think that's a much more sensible plan, with the proviso that the Kenai Fjords will be different from the cruise, but the seasickness issue is a real one.

 

Two supplementary recommendations. First, on the way back to town from Seward, you could easily time it to take a glacier sightseeing cruise out of Whittier. (Or, you could go earlier on Monday and take it before you sail.) The Whittier tours are on much calmer water than the Kenai Fjords trips, and while they typically don't encounter nearly as much wildlife as the Fjords tours, they do get incredibly close to numerous tidewater glaciers, and you'll also see seals, a lot of birds, and maybe some Orcas. But it's a great outing, one that you won't forget. Again, it's completely different than the drive-by glacier viewing you'll get on the cruise.

 

The second recommendation is to get up in the air at some point. Even if you don't want to spend the money for a Denali flightseeing trip, just one of the glacier/Cook Inlet trips will give you an altogether different appreciation of southcentral Alaska than you'll get in a car or on a boat. If there are nervous flyers, fine, but if at least two of your party are game, a takeoff on floats from Lake Hood, followed by the awesome display of mountains, glaciers, ice fields, lakes, rivers... knock your socks off.

[Budget Queen]

 

I see myself following all your suggestions, other than maybe the Kenai Fjords cruise - with the 7-day cruise itself the following week, I don't want the party getting 'cruise-fatigue' (and my wife is rather prone to sea-sickness). This, despite me getting the value of that suggestion - the landscape and wildlife sights would be different and look tempting.

 

 

QUOTE]

 

You may want to rethink this. There is absolutely no comparison between being on water. A boat tour is grossly superior to anything seen from a cruise ship. Especially with your photography interest, you can hit the jackpot with varied wildlife. An alternative or addition, I also recommend is a Prince William Sound boat tour. I am on both at every opportunity.

[donaldsc]

I'll throw in a couple of pennies...

 

 

 

 

 

If this works, you wouldn't need a car for the Monday (assuming you're taking a cruise transfer or the train to Whittier) so you've offset the flightseeing cost slightly (and the cheaper hotels in Anchorage and Seward will also have helped.) But you'll have seen "the mountain," seen wildlife, glaciers, and some incredible scenery, all in rapid order but maintaining some sort of creature comfort. More importantly, you'll have only spent something like six hours behind the wheel or on a bus, vs. something close to 18 hours with your original plan.

 

Just a suggestion.

 

One additional thought - if you rent from Avis, you do not have to go back to Anchorage. You can drop the car off in Whittier saving the cost of an Anchorage to Whittier transfer and also having more time to see things.

 

DON

[radhak]

Appreciate the advice, people! The boat cruise would be something I'll pencil in as 'tentative', but seasickness is a serious issue. The cruise itself was possible only after a lot of cajoling...

 

The view from the air will happen, I'm confident. I see that FlyRusts offer a simpler, shorter trip too, if the longer one to Denali is price-daunting. Gotta keep the costs down, as we were recommended to take the helicopter at Skagway during the cruise, apart from the whale-watching in Juneau.

[Budget Queen]

Appreciate the advice, people! The boat cruise would be something I'll pencil in as 'tentative', but seasickness is a serious issue. The cruise itself was possible only after a lot of cajoling...

 

The view from the air will happen, I'm confident. I see that FlyRusts offer a simpler, shorter trip too, if the longer one to Denali is price-daunting. Gotta keep the costs down, as we were recommended to take the helicopter at Skagway during the cruise, apart from the whale-watching in Juneau.

 

You have the option to take a glacier helicopter landing out of Juneau or Skagway. If you have the port time, this can easily be cobooked out of Juneau, and would free up Skagway for something else. A car rental is a cost saving suggestion.

 

I do suggest you have some motion sickness precautions in place, as I have seen plenty of sick passengers on Alaska cruises. Consult a health care professional for individual advice. Precautions, could eliminate this whole issue, opening up some fantastic touring opportunities. Otherwise, I would not hesitate to split up. Plenty else to see and do. I would not give up any touring I wanted to do. My opinion, only (and my traveling style)