We didn't do our dogsledding in Seward, but it seems like I read about one there too. I think you could even spend the night with the dogs. Nothing like 70 dogs to keep you awake. lol. We did our dogsledding in Girdwood.

Thanks again spiro & Bill for your replies. You two have been most helpful.

Thanks for the info about Wal-Mart in Wasilia instead of Anchorage. We've been to Fred Meyer stores when traveling in the west and they are very nice. We will purchase supplies before heading to Denali and will probably need to restock by mid week. I believe I read that on the bus trip through Denali there is a light lunch included, but a person needs to take water & snacks. Do you know if they allow a small, soft-sided cooler?

I think during our first day in Seward we will visit the Sea Life Center (coupon in tour saver) and Exit Glacier. I understand it is easy to reach. We are going to do the 8 hour tour of Kenai Fjords on Thursday.

Depending on our final plans for Friday, we would like to take the tram at Alyeska. Thanks for the info about the cafe at the top.

Does anybody have an opinion about the train from Portage to either Whittier or Grandview? One of my daughter's friends told her we must do a train trip while in Alaska, although she was in a different area than where we will be. The train to Grandview sounds like the best trip. However, it doesn't leave until 1 PM and doesn't return until around 5:45 PM. The flight I am looking at leaves at 8:20 PM, but I could choose the 11:30 PM flight. I wouldn't want to miss the flight. I've checked Google Maps and it appears to be about an hour to the airport from Portage. I'm afraid that might be cutting it close since I will have a rental car to return.

Dogsledding is another option for Friday. I will look into what is available in Girdwood. There is also a coupon in the northern lights coupon book for Back country jet boat tours. The tour gets good review on Trip Advisor. It leaves at 1:00 and returns at 4:30. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks again.

Wal-mart and Fred Meyer both have stores in Wasilla, just off the main Parks highway about 2 1/2 miles apart, Wal-Mart on your left heading north, FM on your right a short distance further. Can't miss seeing either one.

<b>I believe I read that on the bus trip through Denali there is a light lunch included, but a person needs to take water & snacks. Do you know if they allow a small, soft-sided cooler?</b>

No lunch served on the shuttle busses, which is what I recommend. The "Tundra Tours", which are not shuttle busses but are more expensive, do serve lunch. There are lengthy Fodors threads discussing shuttle bus vs Tundra tours options.

You wrote above you were going to Eielson, which implies the shuttle system since the Tundra Tours don't go that far (or at least haven't in the years we visited).

Anyway, on the shuttle busses we've always carried on large heavy photo backpacks and tripods so I'm sure a small soft cooler that would fit under the seat would be fine. Never really felt the need for a cooler though, the air was cool enough.

Bill,

You are so helpful. Thanks for the directions to Fred Meyer and Wal-Mart. We may stop at both. As you mentioned, FM has better food selections and we will need to plan for lunch on Sunday.

Sorry, I've read so much I get things confused. I realize now the buses that provide lunch are the tour buses. No, we plan to use the shuttle bus. We like the lower cost and flexibility. We don't want to carry too much. Daughter and I are both planning to take a back pack. She is the photographer. Hadn't thought about taking a tri-pod. I will mention it to her. I think she has one that wouldn't take up too much space. I presume we should dress in layers and prepare for a cool morning and hopefully warmer in the afternoon. We will do this trip on August 26. I thought a cooler might be a good idea if we will take deli sandwiches. Don't want to get food poisoning!

When you took the shuttle bus tour, did you take the first bus of the day? I believe it leaves at 6 or 6:30, although they don't have the 2012 schedule posted yet.

<b>When you took the shuttle bus tour, did you take the first bus of the day?</b>

We've taken the shuttle trip maybe a dozen times. First year we did try to get on the first bus out but it is usually pretty full.

Since we (wife and I) had large backpacks with photo gear we found it was better (on subsequent trips) to catch the 2nd or 3rd bus to Eielson since it wasn't as crowded and we could usually snag two adjacent seats near the back. This let us set the packs on the seat so we could get to lenses etc quickly, and also since half the time the animals are on one side, half the time the other side we could slide across and share a window.

If you go out really early and have the stamina then I'd suggest getting off and either walking the road or hiking the more open areas, then catching another bus. Particularly good to do the road walking from high passes (walk down, then catch a new bus) like Polychrome and Sable etc, and hiking in open areas between Highway Pass and Eielson, which is my favorite area.

Primrose Ridge area is usually wonderful for tundra colors in late Aug but I think the last time we were there the busses weren't picking people up on Primrose since it was close to the paved road, but they tweak the rules practically every year so doesn't hurt to ask.

If you are doing this (walking or hiking) the cooler will be a hassle, and any food smells might be attractive to the bears, so I'd just take packaged food.

Hello There,
As a born and raised Alaskan, mostly in Anchorage I have a couple of recommendations for you.
First off driving to Denali is at least a 5 hour excursion if not longer and the second thing Palmer isn't really that exciting of a place to go so I would not dedicate a whole evening/night to the place. I would recommend on Day 2 driving to Talkeetna and staying out there for a night. Try to get your flightseeing trip in while there (the ones where you can land on a glacier near McKinley are fantastic).

I would stay 2 nights in Denali if possible because of all the traveling involved. The Denali bus tours or the worthwhile one is 8 hours and it's the SHUTTLE BUS tour to the Eielson Visitor Center. The shuttle buses make a lot of stops for wildlife and the view from that center of McKinley is fantastic!)

I wouldn't waste a day in Palmer. You'd probably find a lot more to do in Anchorage and it's only 30 minutes south of Palmer. The Anchorage Museum is really fantastic and has an awesome Alaska Native exhibit. There's also the Alaska Native Heritage Center, the paved coastal trail which is a gorgeous walk and tons of great food places in downtown Anchorage.

The Kenai River is gorgeous and I'm sure you'll love the Princess hotel at Copper Landing.

Other places I would recommend going,: Whittier ( tons of different sea-wildlife viewing tours available and it's about 45 minute drive from Anchorage and you get to go through a 2 mile long tunnel through a mountain), Seward (only a 2 hour drive from Anchorage), Alyeska (take the tram to the top of the mountain. Chair 5 (their pizza), Double Musky, and Jack Sprats are all really great places to have dinner in Girdwood.

Welcome to Fodors Jen. I am interested in visiting Alaska so I follow the Alaska posts--would love to go there in 2013, so it's great to read all the suggestions--Alaska is so big,it is more difficult to plan a visit there. It's great to get advice from someone born and raised in Alaska.

mlm--looks like an exciting trip you have planned.

It was great to see my post come back to the top. I haven't looked at it in a while. AKJen - thanks so much for all of the suggestions. We have booked our airline tickets on Alaska Air. We will arrive in the afternoon of Aug 24 and depart at 11:30 PM on Aug 31, giving us 7 full days in Alaska. Our tentative schedule is as follows, but we are open to suggestions.

Friday afternoon-arrive in Anchorage. Spend the night. Maybe do some sight seeing, however it will be a long day. Not sure how late I can stay awake.
Saturday-drive to Denali. Stop in Wasila for supplies. Spend the night.
Sunday-8 hour bus trip to Eielson. Spend the night. We have a 2 for 1 coupon at Denali Bluffs.
Monday - We will spend the night in Palmer, but not in a hurry to get there. We plan to take a flight seeing trip from Talkeetna. Have a two for one deal at the Knik River Lodge.
Tuesday - We are thinking about going to the Alaska State Fair.
Wednesday - We will make our way to Seward to spend the night. We might deter to Whittier for a cruise at Prince William Sound.
Thursday - Kenai Fjords cruise. Spending the night in Seward. We decided not to stay at the Princess Lodge at Copper Landing. It seems very remote and I think there is more to do around Seward.
Friday - We plan to take the Alyeska tram. We are also considering the round trip train from Portage to Grandview. We could also go back to Anchorage. We don't have definite plans for this day

Jen-since you are very familiar with Anchorage, which area do you suggest for us to spend the night on Friday? We are arriving Friday afternoon and will leave for Denali on Saturday morning. I have looked at several B & B's that offer a room with 2 beds and a private bath (that is a requirement). Hotels are very expensive and many don't get good reviews on Tripadvisor. Some things I have read say at least part of the downtown area is not very desirable.

Thanks again for your post. I welcome any advice you can give.

I am going to Alaska in May and wondered if anyone had 2012 Tour Saver coupons for Stan Stevens Boat tour in Valdez and for McKinley Flight Tour that you aren't planning to use. These are the only two I need from the book. I would really appreciate it!

If you make it to southeast I'd recommend http://www.mountainflyingservice.com they offer awesome flightseeing over Glacier Bay. However if you're up around Anchorage, http://www.chaplinakair.com offers good flightseeing in their Cessna 185. It's on floats so you get some neat options for places to land.