Dan

I am in the begining stages of planning a trip to Alaska for the Summer of 2003. I have a couple of Basic Questions.

Fly or Cruise?
Which type of cruise? (from the south or north)
Which stops?
What Month?
What books are good to buy?
Interesting and things you must do?

JoAnn

We took a cruise from south to north to experience the changing scenery, as it seemed to get more magnificent going north. We had read John Michner's Alaska before going and got a good history of Alaska and what to expect. We did the ship, train to Denali and then to Fairbanks add on. Fantastic!! We took a Princess cruise and were happy with it. Our ship stopped at Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway (where the gold miners started from to get to the Yukon gold). We did a helicopter tour to a glacier in Juneau and the Train trip in Skagway. Do walk around Skagway, it's neat. We had a tour of Anchorage, and of course the 8 hour Denali bus ride to see as much of the wild life as possible. We had a beautiful day and could see all of Denali mountain. When we went back 6 years later we had rain in the park and didn't see anything. We also had a tour of Fairbanks and got to see the pipeline. Our cruise was in early August. Fodor had a good guide book, and I suppose Frommer's would be good too.

barbara

Alaska is such a huge state, start off with a cruise vacation to get a taste of what is there. We did North to South in June on Princess, i wish we had donea landtour with it but we were pressed for time.

May

We flew into Anchorage, drove around the southern part of the body of the state and took a day cruise out of Seward. Self directed travel there is easy and we felt we experienced a great cross section of what AK has to offer.

Postal

My family and I spent two weeks exploring the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage, Anchorage itself, and about 60 miles north of Anchorage. We too took a day cruise out of Seward (six hours) and were glad we did, but we really enjoyed being able to go wherever we wanted and for as long as we liked.

Frozen Chick

I would suggest exploring on your own -- cruise passengers are herded like cattle, with little time to stop and ponder. Alaska has places to ponder around every corner.....turquoise rivers, snow-streaked mountains, wildlife in unexpected places. (you get the idea) The single best resource for identifying the places you'd like to see would be the Milepost. Go to www.milepost.com -- enjoy your journey, whether afloat or on wheels or hiking boots!

John

Dan, if your time or wallet can swing it, probably the best approach will be to take a cruise from Vancouver to Seward (or vice versa) with time at the northern end for car-based touring of southcentral and interior Alaska, including the Kenai Peninsula if possible, Anchorage, Denali Park and the interior, the Copper River basin, and cross Prince William Sound by ferry to complete the big loop. Additional excursions are possible at any point - flightseeing, hiking, fishing expeditions, visits to native villages, etc. etc., with the only limitations being self-imposed. One visit is not possibly enough time to see the variety of this huge place, so set priorities and start planning. (If your budget's tight, the Alaska State Ferry has options which essentially mimic the cruise itineraries at a fraction of the cost, but no casinos or buffets.)

As far as time to visit goes, most people would probably recommend later in the summer (Aug-Sept) rather than earlier, in order to escape peak crowds, peak bugs, and potholed roads.

The Milepost is a standard (I don't like it that much but everyone's entitled to an opinion,) but for a fascinating read on Alaska (20 years old but still relevant) pick up "Coming into the Country" by John McPhee.

Frank

Dan - a lot depends on your interests and length of vacation. We spent two weeks in late June, flew into Anchorage, and rented a car. The magazine Milepost is updated annually and serves an excellent resource for anyone contemplating a self-drive vacation. In Seward take a wildlife cruise - recommend Mariah Tours which is a small boat and allows you to get much closer to Glaciers and wildlife. Ferry between Portage and Valdez provided an additonal opportunity to get a close up view of sea life and beautiful scenery. Get out of the car and do some hiking - many beautiful trails including Russian Lake Trail to salmon viewing area and Turnagain Arm for views. Go to Denali NP and make advance reservations for the first trip (5AM) on the school buses for the best chances to see wildlife. Native Indian Cultural Center (outside Anchorage) and Univ of Alaska-Fairbanks museum were among our highlights. Just outside Homer is the Norman Lowell gallery and home - visit while this wonderful artist is still alive. Some of his paintings can take your breath away.

Alan Cleveland

Alaska offers too many options for any one venue. So, I agree with those who have suggested that you set your priorities. Consider the number of people in your party, the age of the travelers, and what you really, really, really want to see.

The cruise can expose you to much of Alaska's rugged and remote coastal scenery, but, the cruise industry is not a friend to the environment. So, as they're exposing you to the pristine shores, they are often at the same time leaving havoc in their wake. Which in time, destroys the very thing you are coming to see. That is the primary reason that I don't recommend any of the international cruise lines. There are plenty of other reasons to avoid the cruise lines ranging from their employment practices, to their enslavement of the local vendors, to the cattle like way in which you are herded around the state.

sue

We are doing alaska in 2 weeks! Taking a small ship cruise (Glacier Bay tours) from Juneau to Sitka, then flying to Anchorage for a weeks rental of a motorhome. We were originally going to do the Vancouver thing, but had several tell us that if you want to see Alaska, you waste a day or so getting there, then the same back. will see Vancouver some other time!

Frances

Dan,
My husband and I traveled to Alaska the last week of July and first week of August 2000. No cruise, I planned and booked just about everything over the internet. Go to Alaska's web page, it has great info and you can order a free travel planner which gives you a lot a great info on the different parts of the state. Yes, it has lots of ads too, but some of them are really useful and some provide links that help with your planning.The web address used to be http:/avp.travelalaska.com. I don't know if that's current or not but I found their site without that when I first started planning. From their site you get links to tons of other useful sites.

I agree that you need to set priorities. Fortunately you have plenty of time. I quick overview of what we did.

Flew into Anchorage and picked up rental car. Drove to Seward, with quick stops along the way to just marvel at the scenery. (We're from Florida.) Since we wanted to salmon and halibut fish, we spent four days in Seward. If you're not into fishing you could cut that time in half. In the Seward area yoy should take the short drive and walk to Exit Glacier. It one of the few places where you can so easily accessa glacier and actually touch it. On that road is a restaurant called Resurrection Roadhouse. Don't miss it. The chowder alone is worth stopping for. From Whittier you can take one of the small boat cruises through Prince Willaim Sound, much better way to see the glaciers and wildlife. The library in Seward shows a film on the 1960 earthquake and tidal wave. Fascinating if you're into that sort of thing.

From Seward we drove up to Denali Nat'l Park. Agree with getting the first tour bus out. But also take time to hike some of the trails. The one to Horseshoe Lake is well worth the effort. Also some interesting things to see just north of Denali as well as on the drive up from Anchorage.

Returned to Anchorage and flew to Juneau then out to Glacier Bay NAtional Park. We did the whale watching boat trip and saw both killer and humpbacks and also went up into Glacier Bay to see more glaciers. Glacier Bay Lodge is in the park itself and is a great place to stay if you're into nature.

From Juneau we flew to Ketchikan to see some totems and just relax before we headed home.

ANother great book if you plan to do any driving is Bell's Guide to Alaska. It gives detailed info on all the roads in the state, including distance to the next gas station.

Hope this long posting helps. Alaska is great. We plan to go back.

Frances

Dan

thanks - we are from Florida too, Miami, and can't wait!

Kerrie

This is rather an unorthodox way of leaving a message for Sue --- but I'd love to know what you thought of the Glacier Bay Cruise Line --- we are planning a trip next year and I am tossing up the idea of signing up for their sea kayaking trip... Hope you had a great trip and would love to hear from you... K

Tracey

I would also like to hear from Sue. I am thinking about crusing with Glacier Bay at the end of the season. We wanted to go with them because it is an Alaskan owned company and they have kayaks on board. Hope you have a great trip and am looking foward to your trip report!