Tag-a-long On Our Fun Alaska Vacation

I’d like to share our fun Alaska vacation itinerary with you, so you can get an idea of how long it takes to get from one area to another, some of the exciting things you can do and learn a little about the cities and hotels where we’re going to stay, in case you decide to do this, too.

I’ll be posting lots of pictures, which you can see on Facebook at Carefree Romantic Vacations, if you like! If you have questions, please ask them.  I’ll be happy to answer when I can.

What we’re doing is similar to what you would do if you did a cruisetour with a cruise line.

We fly today from Los Angeles Airport to Anchorage, non-stop, which takes about 5 hrs. 40 min.  We’re renting a car, but if you did a cruise tour, the cruise line would pick you up and take you to your hotel.

We’re staying one night at the Homewood Suites Anchorage, which is just over four miles from the airport.  If you don’t have a car here, they have a shuttle that provides pick-up and drop-off service to select downtown attractions. There’s lots to do in Anchorage; bear viewing, biking, dog sledding, fishing, glacier viewing, horseback riding, hiking, trails and wildlife just to name a few.

We leave in the morning to head toward Talkeetna on our way to Denali.  Now, if we were doing a cruisetour, we would be taking a luxurious domed rail car to Denali, but I’m sure we’ll be able to see lots of beautiful scenery on the way, too.

We’ll be stopping in Talkeetna and taking a flight seeing trip with K2 Aviation.  We’re excited about doing their McKinley Experience with a glacier landing, a journey into an extraordinary land of towering snowy peaks and plunging glacial valleys as we view the vertical rise of Mt. McKinley.

After our exciting flight, we continue on to our accommodations in Denali; the Denali Park Village.  Here we’ll be close to the action of Denali, but will be able to enjoy the evening solitude and relax to the sound of the Nenana River sweeping by.  We’re really hoping to see the Northern Lights during our stay here.

The next day will be our first full day in Denali and we will catch one of the green shuttle buses into the National Park.  You can’t drive your car into the park.  You can either take a tour bus into the park or take the shuttle bus.  The tours are fully narrated, but you won’t be able to get off the tour bus and explore on your own.  The shuttles can drop you off so you can hike for a bit, then you just catch the next shuttle bus going by in the direction you want to go.

Alaskan Brown Bear

Moose

Bald Eagle

We’re hoping to see bear, caribou and moose in the park.  We’ll be dressing warmly, as it’s supposed to be in the low 30s in Denali.  We’re also supposed to get rain, maybe even snow.  Brrr.  We’re heading to the furthest place we can go; Kantishna, originally founded as a gold mining camp.  The round-trip journey takes a minimum of eight hours.

On day four, we will be doing a two hour Alaska whitewater rafting trip with class III & class IV whitewater rapids.  We opted to paddle ourselves, instead of having the guide do all the paddling.  Our last two rafting trip were a little on the tame side, so we’re hoping for an exciting ride.

In the morning, we’ll be heading north to Fairbanks.  We’re looking forward to our cruise on the Riverboat Discovery.  This is a family run business.  The Binkley’s have been in the Fairbanks area since the early 1900’s.  This is excursion is a staple on cruisetour itineraries.  It’s more than a cruise.  It’s also a tour jam packed with Alaskan culture; a Chena Indian Village walking tour, a bush pilot demonstration, a visit to the home and kennels of the late four-time Iditarod champion Susan Butcher and the chilling “Alaska @ 40 Below Experience”.

We stay at the Hampton Inn & Suites Fairbanks.  If you stay just one-night in Fairbanks, Pioneer Park is a must see.  It is a park consisting of a “downtown” area made up of some of the original buildings from the creation of the community of Fairbanks.  There is also a pioneer museum, air museum, mini-golf course, carousel and many other sights and sounds to take in at Pioneer Park.  There are dining options as well, but the big deal is the all-you-can-eat Salmon Bake located inside the park.  They also serve halibut or cod and prime rib.  It is a buffet style dining experience and a tourist favorite.

Tuesday we drive all the way from Fairbanks back to Anchorage.  It’s an all-day drive and there’s road construction along the way.  There are also long lines of motor homes to contend with than can get as long as 30-40 vehicles.  Our strategy is to leave early to avoid as much of it as possible.  Wish us luck!

Anchorage, Alaska. Aerial view of the city taken from a helicopter during the summer. Body of water behind is Cook Inlet. Denali is behind

We spend our last night in Alaska at the Dimond Center Hotel, owned by the native Seldovia Village Tribe.  This is a great hotel for pre or post cruise nights, because they have a 24-hour airport shuttle.  It’s the closest Anchorage hotel to the 127-mile long scenic byway known as Seward Highway. The first 50 miles of Seward Highway stretches between the Chugach Mountains and the Turnagain Arm shores. There are over 40 nearby sit-down restaurants within a 3-mile radius of Dimond Center Hotel.  It’s in the largest shopping district of Anchorage, allowing travelers to pack lighter and take unplanned adventures.

We’re heading home in the early morning, stopping in Seattle for a couple of hours and arriving in Los Angeles by 4 PM.

If you don’t have a lot of time, this itinerary is a great way to see a lot of central Alaska, one of North America’s most spectacularly beautiful regions.  I would be my pleasure to help you put it together.  You can contact me at 800-733-7471.

Some photography provided by Visit Anchorage.