philsbert1

Re our early August '07 Alaska trip:
Any recommendations re specific Kenai water tours? We are not so much interested in lunch/dinner (as with the Fox Island one)...more into the sights and sealife. Also, we are very interested in one of the bear-viewing flights/tours. I read a lot of messages re Emerald Air but also noted others from the Milepost [Bald Mountain Air Service, Inlet Charters, Kachemak Bay Flying Service, Smokey Bay Air out of Homer and Natron Air in Soldotna]. Some even recommend, since flights are limited, making those reservations first and adjusting the vacation schedule around that. Have people found that to be true, especially in August? Has anyone had a particularly exceptional service from any one company? Are there any options other than the flights? Prices seem to range from $300 for half day to $550-600 full day; is the full day the best way to insure a good experience? We were trying to keep our costs down but don't want to miss a terrific experience when we've come all that way.

philsbert1

oops. Sorry for the double post. Tried to copy and past elsewhere.

BudgetQueen

Definately firm up your bear tour first. Slots are already sold out for this year. Allow at least 2 nights in Homer if that is your area.

Alaska Heritage's Northwestern fjords tour out of Seward is the very best in my experience. All day and the most opportunity for sightseeing. They also use their nicest and fastest boat on this run. But any 6 hour Kenai fjords boat trip will offer you a great day.

philsbert1

Thanks for the recommendation. Any thoughts re the worthiness of doing a (less expensive) half-day bear flightseeing trip vs. a whole day? We are trying not to stertch ourselves too thin, but would like to include arriving in Anchorage, visiting Seward (with one day for Kenai boat trip and maybe one for Katchemak Park) or Homer or both, and Denali in a 10-11 days trip.

Miss_Maple

Me thinks that for a 10 day trip -- pick either Seward or Homer -- it's too much driving to fit it all in. Also, in regards to the Seward boat trip (a must do), consider having a backup day incase the weather doesn't cooperate. What a difference a day can make. You don't want to go out if it's too rough.

philsbert1

Any recommendation re Homer vs. Seward? We (as with all Alaska visitors most likely) would like to be flexible with our schedule, but with the crowds of August and limited availability of some tours/lodging/etc., we are afraid of being left high and dry. It's hard to know what to make reservations for ahead of time and what not. Due to frequent flyer mile issues, we are contemplating flying into Fairbanks, taking 3-4 days to do the train down to Denali/Talkeetna, then Anchorage, [we would prefer to drive from Fairbanks to Anchorage but one-way car rental penalties appear brutal] then rent a car in Anchorage. We would spend a day there then drive to Homer or Seward and do activities in that area. If there was the possibility of last-minute Kenai boat trips from either Seward or Homer, that would be great. We would then fly home out of Anchorage.

Miss_Maple

Seward is tons of fun but when the cruise ships pull in ... the place is packed and you should have reservations ... check on the Seward municipal website .. it has in the past listed the Cruise ship dockings .. so it's very crowded the day before, and day of the docking. So if you could time it to enjoy the town without the crowd . so much the better.

Homer - doesn't have issues with cruise ship dockings and I have not been there, intend to visit in 2008.

dfrostnh

I think the train from Fairbanks to Anchorage is a good idea. The scenery is fine but not fantastic. We only drove from Wasilla to Talkeetna and thought it was kind of boring even though Denali was in view. OTH the scenery on drive south of Anchorage is breath taking and you will want to stop frequently for photos. There is also more places to stop along the way to Seward i.e. Alyeska tramway. The boat cruise out of Seward is not to be missed. We made reservations the day before knowing the weather was going to be perfect BUT we had other days open and didn't think to check about cruise ships in port. Good point! It was a fairly quiet day in Seward on our last visit but it was also late June not August. Homer is wonderful but the nature cruise is not at all as great as the one out of Seward plus no glaciers. We took the cruise over to Seldovia. Personally I like Homer a lot. The Pratt Museum was a highlight. It's small but I was very impressed with the short videos esp the one about homesteading in the 50s (when my parents were happily settling into suburbia with modern conveniences). We took a short flight with Smokey Bay as part of a package visit between Seldovia and Homer (boat over, flight back). It was a fun flight over a glacier but short and not a bear viewing trip. The drive between Seward and Homer is 3-4 hours. Your return trip to Anchorage from Homer is at least 5 hours. Only one way to get to and from. Seward is beautiful. I like the downtown better, very walkable. Homer seems to be more spread out but you can also get a tremendous view as you approach town and also if you take the Sky Line drive. I thought Homer was more artsy and definitely a place for fishermen (halibut charters). If it weren't for bear-viewing flights, I would recommend choosing Seward if you could only visit one. I would also recommend that you leave Anchorage for the last of your visit giving you a bit more flex time. Soldotna is only about 1 1/2 hours from Seward if you choose Natron Air. Hope you have a great trip!

philsbert1

Thanks for the specific info re Kenai peninsula area. I did look up the dates for the cruise ship landings at Seward in August, but...wow...crossing off the day immediately before and the day of ship landing leaves very few days. ;-)
One thing I had noted was some people staying at Cooper Landing, and then being flexible as to when/whether they go to Seward or Homer or both areas. If we do the Kenai fjords boat for a day, will Prince William Sound day trip be significantly different/better?

Another concern we have is taking the train from Fairbanks. Will we have a difficult time getting to/from accommodations at the Denali stop? Is there a way to get from the train depot to Healy and back? How about at Talkeetna? With purchasing a ticket from Fairbanks to Anchorage, can we stop at Denali for a few days and then get back on a later train? Our issue with not renting a car in Fairbanks and driving to Anchorage is the onerous "one-way" charge added when not returning the car to same location added to the already high prices for car rental. Our alternative is to fly into Anchorage and rent there, with an up-and-back trip to Denali. It is less expensive for us to fly into Fairbanks and leave out of Anchorage, and we thought the scenery even from the train, and the "down" or rest time might be handy, but if we will be losing out a lot by taking the train, it might be worth the difference.

dcd

philsbert, your plan sounds a lot like ours (and tons of other folks who opt for a land based tour). We'll be going the last part of Aug. After lots of reading here and posting a few itinerary Qs for the fine Fodorites to critique, we settled on this itinerary for 11 days:

Day 1 - arrive Anchorage, rent car and spend the nite there;

Day 2 - drive to Homer and spend Days 3 & 4 there (and take the Emerald Air trip on Day 3);

Day 5 - drive to Seward and spend Days 6 & 7 there (and take a Kenai tour on one of those days);

Day 8 - drive to Talkeetna and spend the nite;

Day 9 - consider a flightseeing tour from Talkeetna and then drive to Healy and spend the night (and possibly go on a ranger hike in Denali, time permitting); Day 10 - take Denali school bus trip to Wonder Lake and spend the nite in Healy; Day 11 - drive to Anchorage and take a late evening flight home.

We haven't settled on a Kenai tour yet but are leaning toward the one provided by the Salt Water Lodge, where we'll be staying. They have a combo sightseeing and fishing trip that sounds like fun. I'm told the silver salmon are running then.

philsbert1

Thanks for sharing your itinerary...looks great. We had hoped to see fly into and see Fairbanks initially, even if just for a day, and then go to Denali/Anchorage/Kenai/etc. but it looks like (unless we can get some type of Denali package between Fairbanks and Anchorage) we would be at a disadvantage with no transportation other than the train.

BudgetQueen

The Alaska RR takes more time than driving, I suggest doing it in three seqments if you continue. It is a disadvantage to not have a car in Denali park. Most Healy accomdations do not shuttle and you will be dependent on lodge shuttles to get you to the access center and back for the park Road shuttle.

Be aware- the Parks Highway Fairbanks/Anchorage, just about parallels the train tracks. No advantage scenery wise taking the train.

there is nothing in Cooper Landing except fishing. It would not be an area I would base out of. Gwin's is excellent for a meal stop.

There is one car rental agency out of Denali Park, if you are on the train, I strongly advise you to consider one.

philsbert1

Thanks. I think, now, a car at Denali will be a necessity in our case. I will look into figuring out a way, whether the expensive one-way rental from Fairbanks to Anchorage, or just forgetting our time in Fairbanks and fly into Anchorage.