Princess On your own -Tour FBX - Guidance needed

[geepmaley]

Looking for guidance from folks who have done this tour. with Princess and how it works when you are at Denali and Mckinley lodges.

 

Does it make sense to rent a car? Is there a place to rent a car?

 

What about things to do?

 

Place to eat?

 

Just realized we are  only getting transportation and lodging from Princess

[JinxyB]

We are doing the 4 day on your own tour and I did book a few excursions through Princess. Other plans are to just do some hikes and figure it out as we go. Maybe Uber to sone local restaurants 

[Northern Aurora]

The Denali Princess Lodge is located outside of the park entrance in an area referred to as "Glitter Gulch."  It is an assortment of lodges, restaurants and gift stores strung along the George Park's Highway.  So there will be some other meal options than what is offered in the Princess complex.  

 

In the past there has been a business in the Denali area which offered limited rental vehicles.  Goggle to Denali visitor's bureau/chamber of commerce to try to find the company name.  It is not a national car rental company.  

 

Also check the Denali National Park website.  Shuttle buses into the park are limited in terms of how far they can drive into the park due to the issues with the Pretty Rocks area.  The DNP website will also provide info on visitor center hours and tours of the dog kennels (the park rangers use dog teams in the winter to patrol the park).

 

The McKinley View Princess is in an isolated area.  It is off the Parks highway up an incline.  There are no restaurants off the property within walking distance.  The closest community is Talkeetna which is about a 45 minute drive away (assuming no road construction issues).  In the past there has been a shuttle (for a fee) offered from the lodge into Talkeetna.  Some posters have stated that they were not charged a fee for the shuttle if they were on a cruise tour.    

[geepmaley]

1 hour ago, Northern Aurora said:

The Denali Princess Lodge is located outside of the park entrance in an area referred to as "Glitter Gulch."  It is an assortment of lodges, restaurants and gift stores strung along the George Park's Highway.  So there will be some other meal options than what is offered in the Princess complex.  

 

In the past there has been a business in the Denali area which offered limited rental vehicles.  Goggle to Denali visitor's bureau/chamber of commerce to try to find the company name.  It is not a national car rental company.  

 

Also check the Denali National Park website.  Shuttle buses into the park are limited in terms of how far they can drive into the park due to the issues with the Pretty Rocks area.  The DNP website will also provide info on visitor center hours and tours of the dog kennels (the park rangers use dog teams in the winter to patrol the park).

 

The McKinley View Princess is in an isolated area.  It is off the Parks highway up an incline.  There are no restaurants off the property within walking distance.  The closest community is Talkeetna which is about a 45 minute drive away (assuming no road construction issues).  In the past there has been a shuttle (for a fee) offered from the lodge into Talkeetna.  Some posters have stated that they were not charged a fee for the shuttle if they were on a cruise tour.    

Thanks so much