A day in Anchorage

[ascho]

I am starting a Denali excursion from Anchorage prior to my cruise and have 1 free day in Anchorage. Any suggestions or must see excursions?  We arrive in the middle of the night so we will probably need to sleep in a little that morning. 

[mrell345]

1 hour ago, ascho said:

I am starting a Denali excursion from Anchorage prior to my cruise and have 1 free day in Anchorage. Any suggestions or must see excursions?  We arrive in the middle of the night so we will probably need to sleep in a little that morning. 

where are you coming from, dont forget the time zone change, we are coming from Eastern timezone so 4AM in Anchorage will feel like 8AM back home.

We are doing the Spencer Glacier tour.  http://www.alaska.org/detail/spencer-glacier

http://www.alaska.org/detail/chugach-adventures-spencer-lake-iceberg-float

Edited June 16, 2019 by mrell345

[ascho]

 We are also coming from the eastern time zone.  Thank you for the suggestion. 

[karatemom2]

The Alaskan Native Heritage Center in Anchorage is definitely a worthwhile place to spend some time. 

 

https://www.alaskanative.net/

[donaldsc]

If you have a car, check out Hatcher Pass and Independence Mine State Historical Park - http://www.alaska.org/detail/independence-mine-historical-state-park.

 

DON

[cltcruzer]

If you have a car, a drive down the Seward Highway could be a good idea. Several places along the way to pull off and take pictures and take in the scenery, plus you could go down to the Alyeska resort and take the tram, or a little further to the Wildlife Conservation Center or Portage Glacier (about an hour from downtown Anchorage) 

 

The Native Heritage Center someone earlier recommended is great too. 

 

Obviously there are plenty of spots for hiking if you wanted to do something more active. 

 

If the timing works, the sunsets in Anchorage are incredible. We went to Point Woronzof, but I'm pretty sure any of the parks along the water on the west side of anchorage would be great. As the sunset time neared, dozens of people kept arriving to come see the Midnight Sun go down.

 

If you want to sleep in this wouldn't work, but one morning out of Anchorage we took the train down to Seward and got on a 6 hour Kenai Fjords cruise tour, then took the train back that evening. It was incredible. The train itself has amazing scenery, and the Kenai Fjords area has so much wildlife, glaciers calving... tied at the top (with glacier landing) for my favorite part of my Alaska trip. Very early morning and late night, but totally worth it. 

Edited June 17, 2019 by cltcruzer

[ascho]

These are all great suggestions. Thanks

[masterdrago]

You did not mention dining but I will very highly recommend Simon and Seaforts. The view across Cook Inlet is pretty awesome if the weather cooperates. You can see the south end of the Alaska Range a 100 miles west. Someone here on CC recommended it to us and I'm glad we went. The food is terrific as is the service. Priced accordingly. It's in a "hi-rise" office building on L street at 4th.

[ascho]

Thanks.  We already have reservations for the Haute Quarter Grill.  They both look great. Maybe lunch at Simon and Seaforts for the view