Hi! This is our current itinerary, we are cruising from Vancouver to Whittier and then have only about 3 days in Alaska, so want to make the most of it that we can. Please comment on any advice you have.

Cruising in May 2006
May 15 - Ketchikan
May 16 Juneau
May 17 - Skagway
May 20 - Whittier
We have some ideas on what do to on each of those stops, but I would love to hear some favorites or must-do's from those who have done this before. This will be our first (but not last) trip to Alaska.

We are planning on catching the train or some shuttle from Whittier to Anchorage and spending the day in Anchorage. Then we will drive up to Talkeetna and spend the next couple of days there at the Talkeetna Chalet. We will do the flight tour over Denali/Mt McKinley, but what else is there to do in Talkeetna, or what else could we do and still fit in the McKinley tour?

Our flight will leave out of Anchorage either Monday evening or Tuesday morning, depending on what plans we make.

Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

In Skagway, I highly recommend the White Pass railway. There are several variations of shore excursions that may include the train. It travels along the side of a mountain 3000ft up. Beautiful views, and you can hang outside between the train cars for some great shots. Juneau is where you'll see the whales. I did the 4 hour catamaran in an inlet where you'll see humpbacks, seals, bald eagles, etc. Afterwards, we had plenty of time to shop in Juneau, drink a beer in the famous Red Dog Saloon, etc. It was the highlight of my trip!

In Ketchikan I did the totem pole park trip which I don't recommend at all unless you're really into totem poles. It's a great little town to walk around in w/o having to do a particular excursion. Good deals on jewelry.

I did not do the land portion of Alaska. Hope this helps!

Top tour choices, but by NO means the only ones, there are plenty of excellent tours to consider and you are BEST to look over a shore excurion list and narrow down your interests.

Juneau- whale watching, glacier helicopter landing.
Ketcikan- Misty Fjord floatplane, fishing, totems
Skagway- White Pass RR, glacier helicopter landings, Avis rental car to Emerald Lake 150 miles round trip.

As for interior- You do realize the Alaska RR train leaves at 6pm?? Cruise contracted train leaves in the morning but significantly more and goes to the airport- convenient for a car rental. I would not stay 2 nights in Talkeetna- if you only have 3 days. And my preference would definately be Seward instead of Talkeetna. Best use of your short time would benefit from a one way car rental with Avis, Whittier/Anchorage. So unless you want a glacier cruise out of Whittier, it is beneficial to get out in the early am, can be off ships by 8am, pick up a car and get going.

In a year's time, perhaps you can add more days?? Certainly keep the option open if possible.

Thanks for the info. The reason for Talkeetna is that we really want to go over Denali/Mt. McKinley - what would the time be from Talkeetna back to Seward?

We can't add any days on this time, but we will go to Alaska again! Maybe next time we will let the kids come too.

With Talkeetna, then you don't have time for Seward. Enjoy it with your return trip.

The question I would think about is your options if the Talkeetna flight is a no go because of weather. I don't know what typical weather is in late May. Would you be able to head to Seward instead of Talkeetna if the weather looked iffy? Talkeetna is a very small town.