I need help critiquing this itinerary and any other general inputs or suggestions you have. Apart from the cruise and flight dates everything else is flexible. I also have some specific questions after the itinerary

8/24: Fly into Anchorage. Stay at Anchorage
8/25: Drive to Seward. Stay at Seward
8/26: Drive to Denali. Stay at Denali
8/27: Stay at Denali
8/28: Drive to Fairbanks. Stay at Fairbanks
8/29: Stay at Fairbanks.
8/30: Drive the Richardson Hwy to Glenallen. Stay at Glenallen
8/31: Drive Glenn Hwy 1 to Anchorage. Stay at Anchorage
9/1: Take train/shuttle to Whittier. Board Cruise to Vancouver (Sapphire Princess)
9/8: Two nights in Vancouver

1) I'm planning this trip late in the season and haven't booked any hotel. Budget hotel recommendations for any of the locations above are appreciated.
2) Is it preferable to take the rail over a shuttle service to whittier
3) Me and my wife both like driving, which is why we are covering a lot of distance. Do any of the distances seem unreasonable because of the road conditions

I would change the order and go up to Denali first. Why go south, then north, then south again? Go up to Denali, spend a few nights and enjoy the park. I *personally* wouldn't bother with Fairbanks...I thought it was a crap-hole. But that's just my opinion. Spend 2 nights in Anchorage, 2 in Denali, then go to Seward and on to Whittier. Make sure you check the tunnel schedule to get to Whittier.

As for hotels, they will be pricey as you are travelling in peak season. My DH and I always stay budget. In Anchorage we did the Days Inn and in Seward the Harborview Inn. Both were nice and clean. No problems at all.

I agree with Rizzo about the order of your stops. You are wasting time by backtracking. Go up to Denali first, then go south.
The overnight 8/25 drive to Seward from Anchorage is wasteful. You are not giving yourself any time there and it is worth at least 2 days. You should take one of the several full or half day cruises available from there and also go to see Exit Glacier. BTW, the train ride between Seward and Anchorage is spectacularly beautiful, so you might want to consider doing that instead of driving.

I also wasn't too impressed with Fairbanks and found my one day there to be more than sufficient. Others on this board, however, have disagreed with me about that. If you really want to see Fairbanks, you might consider flying into there and making your way south.

If you drive up to Denali from Seward as planned, I'd recommend an overnight stop or two at Talkeetna. If you're lucky with clear weather you can do flightseeing or just enjoy the wonderful views of Mt. McKinley from the area. It's a charming little town with lots of activities. It was one of my favorite spots in Alaska. Besides, I think the straight drive from Seward up to Denali will be pretty long.

Thanks for the responses.

One of the things I'm struggling with is the logistics of reaching Whittier for the cruise.

If I return my Hertz car at Seward, can I get transportation to Whittier. I was reconciled to doing a roundtrip to Seward from Anchorage and then going to Whittier separately by train/shuttle.

The other alternative would be to book the car through Avis since to my knowledge that is the only car rental agency serving that port. I have a free weekly rental from Hertz so making this change would pinch a bit.

Any suggestions?

Has anyone rented a car from Whittier in Alaska or returned a car to that location. I wanted to know if there are local companies other than Avis.

The tunnel to Whittier is sometimes open to cars and sometimes open to trains....not sure if they are passenger trains or cargo. So you may be able to return your car in Seward and take the train to Whittier.

Or you could try to hitch a ride...being a single female I wouldn't do that. But I'm not sure of your situation and how comfortable you are with that.

http://www.alaskatransportation.net/

You may be able to arrange something with them.

There is one other rental agency in Whittier called Harleys.

This itineray has too much time in transit and not enough to enjoy the locations. I also suggest you skip Fairbanks and concentrate on Denali park and Seward.

Harleys is NO longer in Business out of Whittier. There is NO train service between Whittier and Seward. There are a few shuttle operators between Whittier/Seward- listings www.seward.com

BudgetQueen thanks for your advise. We are omitting Fairbanks from our itinerary. We will spend 5 days in the Palmer-Talkeetna- Denali area and 3 days in Seward before taking the cruise out of Whittier.

Any recommendations for activities near Palmer or Talkeetna will be much appreciated.