sbp59

We are a family of 4 - 2 teens - planning a round trip in/out of Anchorage 11 days June 07 vacation. We know we want to take the train to Denali/Talkeenta and back to Anchorage and then rent a car to drive to Homer and Seward. We'd like to train (again - 17 yr. old teen son avid train buff) to Seward but then I think it'd be too expensive to rent the car from Seward to Homer and drop back off in Achorage for departure.
Given we are over 7 mos. out, is this a trip I can book totally myself or do I need to go through a tour group. The initial quote I received for a package with lodging and tours (Kenai Fords, Denali bus, rafting, etc.) was $7k (excluding flights). If I book on my own, does everything need to be booked in advance - lodging each night, rental car, tours, etc. Thanks for any additional tips. I've been reading these posts and others seem to manage booking on their own but since I've only done the inside passage cruise I'm not sure about a land only portion on own.

dfrostnh

Would you consider letting your train buff travel alone or with one parent while the others took a rental car to Seward? We waited for a perfect day to take the Kenai Fjords trip and book two people for the next day. The boat had a lot of empty seats (this was late June) on the longest trip. I would not want to be committed to a day when the weather could be iffy. I think you can do your own bookings. See if the Tour Saver will help with savings. We only reserved ahead for weekends but I made the mistake of not having a list of recommended lodgings when I made last minute calls.

BayouGal

I second dfrostnh's suggestion for the train buff, and perhaps the other teen, to take the train and you meet them in Seward.

Yes, you can do all the planning and booking yourself. I did it all myself, and I'd never been on the inside passage cruise, so at least you are familiar with the changing weather, etc., in Alaska. Many here will be happy to help, including me. For some things, it'll be wiser to book ahead, but there are some you can wait on.

Definitely check out toursaver.com - with your group of 4 it could save you a lot.

Good luck with the planning. Feel free to post more questions. Also, TONS of good info here so be sure to read up on the Alaska threads.

Elainee

We took the train from Anchorage to Denali and then on to Fairbanks. Very disappointed! Train very slow! Road mostly parallels train tracks so same scenery. Really needed car at Denali to go to restaurants, etc. Very sorry we did not rent car for the whole trip. If you really must take the train think about renting car at Denali and driving back. We were not able to get a car there but maybe you can. We did all our own booking and it was great. We could plan our excursions based on the weather. Do take a boat up Tracy Arm. In fact, take all the boat trips you can.

wannabe3

Definitely do it yourself. The advice on this forum is great (check out some of the itineraries) and you can also receive information from each Town/City that you will visit as well as the State of Alaska.
My family travels in July, so we felt that we had to make our reservations ahead of time. Still, we found that there were places to stay in each of the places we visited (Anchorage, Seward, Homer, Fairbanks, Valdez)--if you weren't too picky, but the rental cars were really picked over and people without reservations at the airport rental car desks were having to wait until the next day for cars.
We did not take the train to Denali because friends had taken the train and their advice was the same as Elainee--too slow and really needed a car in Denali and Fairbanks. The train to Seward could be a good option for all or some of the family as defrostdh suggested. Then other family members could meet them in the car. Do take all the boat tours you can and try to schedule one of the Bear viewing tours in Homer. These are expensive and we didn't feel we could afford it, but it is the biggest regret of our trip that we did not go on at least a 1/2 day bear viewing trip to Katmai. You will enjoy both the trip and all the planning.

BayouGal

Wannabe3 offers good advice. If going early June, may not be enough bears yet to justify costs. Emerald Air gets high recs here. Many bear viewing outfits' websites have advice on when it's too early or best time of year, etc.

Rent your car NOW if you know your dates. You don't have to put money down, but you'll want to have it reserved. I'd advise reserving for the entire trip, then you can decrease days if necessary, and check rental prices up until your trip. Deals may be had if you watch.

sbp59

Thanks - I'll definitely keep reading this board for advice. What I think I'm reading is that I need to reserve a rental car and definitely the weekend lodging (probably with 4 I need to book the lodging by Nov?). Once I firm up the itinerary, then book the major sightseeing trips. I will look into toursaver. Thanks!

oleg

I am just curious why you'd want to go with the group? You will probably pay more and have much less flexibility than planning your own itinenary. Unless it is a physical challenge, car is much better than train. It is simply a MUST in Denali. If you do not have it there you will be restricted to a small area and depend on your hotel transport for shuttling you to the park entrance.

Elainee

When we were at Denali we stayed at nice cabin "motel" nearby. They took us to the park and to a restaurant for dinner. BUT...after dinner we realized that we could not go outside and hail a cab, or even call for one. We ended up having our waiter drive us to our lodging in his car. We were lucky he was so nice.

sbp59

Let me clarify. We are not going with a group. The tour package quotes we received are a company that prebooks the lodging/rental car/activities for just the 4 of us. Their price does not go down no matter when I take things out so I become more convinced to book this trip myself. I just keep hearing and reading that I must book in advance as given the limited season and the number of post/pre cruise bookings, things do fill up.
The other consideration I have is a 17 year old son who lives for trains. I, as a parent, will make the decision whether or not to give up the flexibility but I just wanted to know if there was anything else to consider.Thanks for your help.

oleg

sbp59 -
OK, you just made it clear about the "group". Sorry, I did not understand it at first.
If your son loves trains then he will definetely like ARR. You are correct again.

BayouGal

sbp59, here are some of the places we wanted to stay or activities, recommended on this forum, but were booked in Jan/Feb for our May/June trip 2005. If you are interested in any of these, they seem to be quite popular, so book ahead.

Homer - Alaska Cottages, http://www.alaskancottages.com/

Valdez - Thompson Pass Chalet, http://www.alaska.net/~chalet/
(you may have to cut & past that link - in preview it is not linking the whole url)

Whittier - Blackstone Bay Day Kayaking, http://www.alaskaseakayakers.com/pri...day-tours.html

I hope you'll really focus on the threads here, even going back a few years. There are a lot of hidden gems on Fodors.

Mama

BayouGal, I suggest you scratch Thompson Pass Chalet from your list. First, you did not stay there! Second, there is no way it can comfortably accommodate 4 people especially if two teens are involved. There are no chairs to sit down, no tv, nothing, no toher guests, no place to put your stuff anywhere
Third, the chalet is not clean properly, shower doesn't work, there is no door between a bathroom and chalet so no privacy at all if you want to go. Coffee pot wasn't washed for a couple years at least.
Bad thing is , the chalet is located 25 miles from Valdez. Should I go on?

BayouGal

LoL, take a chill pill, Mama.

That was a recommendation I'd received and it was not available when we tried to book it, as I stated. He/she is concerned about things being booked up before their travels, so I listed the things we were interested in but were booked when we planned our trip. And some dear Fodorites, who advised us very well for our trip, recommended that chalet. Mama, we stayed in several rustic, remote places in Alaska, some with outdoor johns and probably not everyone's cup of tea, but we (and the teen with us) enjoyed it. I'm sure sbp59 will make up her own mind about her trip and be thankful for as much info as she can get to make informed decisions.

Mama, perhaps offering your opinion from your own experiences would be better than slamming others. Just a thought . . . .

BayouGal

Also, I sincerely hope you told the owner about what you found, Mama. I believe these kinds of problems should definitely be reported. If it is in such a state of disrepair, then surely you discussed working out a price reduction for your discomfort. Did you manage a compromise?

jetset1

Good point BayouGal.. even big resorts and lodges have the occasional bad room which should be brought to the management's attention..sadly, some little hideaways really should be wrapped in crime tape.

..sometimes, the Helmsley in all of us sees or smells things which have been missed.

Faulty maintenance issues should be addressed as soon as discovered..

**rumpled and agitated bumpkins are only cute when aliens visit and witnesses are brought forth to testify.

sbp59

Thanks...I think we've figured it out -- so simple but I made it hard. The rental car is now booked for the entire trip. We are going to do the Kenai Pennisula first and then Denali the latter half so now I determine itinerary and lodging. I have to believe that someone/somewhere has posted a similar full 11 day itinerary starting in Anchorage / Seward / Homer / Talkeetna / Denali entrance and back to Anchorage. Son and dad will definitely take the Anchorage / Seward train ride while me /daughter drive. I will keep researching these boards as well as cruisecritic to figure this out. Thanks for all your help. We didn't even think of kayaking but that looks like something my family would really enjoy!