Have begun making reservations and need some help:
June 24 Anchorage (No reservation)
June 25-27 Denali Lakeview Inn
June 28 - July 3 Still working on
Was thinking of 1 night at Sheep Mountain between Denali and Valdez. Better to spend extra night in Girdwood or should we spend a nignt in Talkeetna? We’re not interested in flight seeing, might go rafting somewhere. Plan to spend 2 nights in Valdez and do a boat tour.
My thought is sail from Valdez to Whittier on July 2 and stay in Seward….still working on where. July 2 and 3. Thinking of Windsong.
July 4-6 Homer, Beach House Bed and Breakfast
July 7 Anchorage (No reservation)


We are 2 adults and a 16 year old. We're trying for places we have the option to cook, we get really tired of eating out. We do easy hiking and rafting, love beautiful natural spots and wildlife, plan to relax and enjoy the natural surroundings.….teenager only likes the visual stimulation of t.v., dvd’s and ipods…Mom and dad make her go beautiful places with them.

So…Talkeetna or Gitdwood? Where to stay in either place? Lodging in Seward is most confusing. HELP!

CLynnWeg, you have a great itinerary now. If you are not intersted in flight seeing stay in Sheep Mountain Cabins which are really wonderful. They do not have kitchens. It is a short drive to Matanuska Glacier for a a hike on a glacier. It is a very exciting ativity for any age including 16 year old. She may surprise you and enjoy hiking with crampons on ice. There are also rafting trips.

It is only my personal recommendations but I would add one more night to Homer and take your daughter on bear watching trip. We went with Emerald Air service several times and I saw how people different ages react including 6 year old and teenagers who at first seems not interested at all until they get off the plane at Katmai National Park and Preserve and see first bears so close to them. Besides Emerald Air not only takes you to see bears, it will help appreciate these beautiful animals. It is an expensive trip but you will have no regreat to spend it on one day trip. Some time ago there was a trip report on bear watching trip with Emerald Air Service. If you need more details about bear watching trip call Emerald Air owners, she is a guide and he is a pilot/guide. They lead all their trips and every time they deliver unforgettable adventure.

Where are you staying in Valdez? If you are planning to take a ferry from Valdez to Whittier make your reservations soon. It is a very easy drive from Whittier to Seward. On the way back from Homer to Anchorage you may stop at Girdwood and take the tram for a late lunch and spectacular views. However, I wouldn't recommend the tram when it is raining and/or when the clowds are low. You can hike on a ridge after your lunch too.
Did you check this website www.cabinsinhomer.com?. Since you have specific accommodations in mind make your reservations soon.

I agree, consider an extra day in Homer for the bear tours, these are just excellent for the salmon eaters, and twice the size of the Denali Park Grizzly. Sheep Mt Inn is a great location and definately consider MICA guides for Glacier trekking.

Have you already checked the ferry schedule?? The ferry does not run every day, so if you haven't verify this first. I'm bias, I really like Talkeetna and think is a very worthwhile overnight. The museum is excellent with all the McKinley climbing information. For some rustic wonderful lodging, there is the Talkeetna Roadhouse, but only the upstairs rooms. 3 share one spotless bath. Excellent breakfasts and lunches.

Budget Queen, would you cosider an overnight stay in Talkeetna if one is not interested in flight seeing? We too are trying to figure out where to stay this summer before going to Denali. This is not our first trip to Alaska but only second to Denali NP. We are also considering Willow for an overnight stay. Decisions, decisions.

We did not use MICA for our glacier hike. I cannot recall the name of the company but we were were very pleased with our guide. There were no other people on this glacier hike but two of us and our guide.

I just wanted to point out that July 4 is a big event for some places in Alaska. There is a big marathon in Seward. We spent our 4th of July in Kenai which has a great parade. Check to see what's going on in Homer. I would suggest getting reservations in Seward soon. I'm going to guess the Forest Fair in Girdwood will be July 1 and 2 which might also make accomendations scarce. Your teen might enjoy the Forest Fair. We saw a lot of teens. It's a craft fair and music festival. She might enjoy the jewelry vendors. Interesting food vendors, too.
The Kenai Fjords boat trip might be a perfect wildlife/spectacular scenery experience for her. Watching orcas swim in unison is amazing. There was beautiful fog rolling around some of the mountainous islands as we headed out in the morning, Hollywood couldn't have done it better!

Thanks for the wealth of info and help. My husband and I are not into flying in small planes and are therefore hesitant to go bear watching. Months ago I posted to see if you could do it by boat, and received no reply. We I've already booked Homer and Denali and hope to decide on the rest this week-end. We will definately do Kenai Fijords and Prince William Sound all day tours. I've checked the ferry, but thanks for reminding me to recheck as my schedule changes!

CLynnWeg.
Please call Emerald Air and talk to them. Tell them your concerns. I can assure you that every single trip we took was very smooth. Last year we couldn't get to Katmai because of high winds. They never fly in uncertain weather and that incudes windy conditions. I bet one day you are going to go on safari and this would be a nice introduction to small planes before you get to Africa. Good luck

The days around July 4 can be a pain on the Kenai if you aren't prepared for it.

Seward, especially, can be crazy. There's no real marathon there, it's the Mount Marathon race, which is relatively short but steep and great fun with its Main Street finish. Plenty of other fun activities.

But ... if you want to stay in Seward around the Fourth, get going very early and prepare for a crazy time with packed restaurants and plenty of people. If the weather's bad, you don't get the day trippers, however.

Also, don't necessarily skip the Alyeska tram if there's fog or the clouds are low. Check at the base and find out how low the clouds are -- if it's just a slim layer, there are few sites cooler than the mountains rising out of a layer of clouds.

One option I'd suggest is spending a night or two on the Homer swing in Halibut Cove or Seldovia.

As for Talkeetna, if you aren't going flightseeing, there's not much there worth more than a short stop . . . or breakfast at the Fairview.

I should add that Emerald Air does not fly a tiny plane. This plane originally had 16 seats but the owners removed some and made changes to give more room and now they fly only nine visitors, one guide and one pilot/guide. Total 12 persons

I wasn't crazy about flying in small planes as well until we went on safari to Kenya. The same size of planes are used in Costa Rica from the San Jose airport to Osa.

We cruised to Osa...still looking for lodging in Seward... Windsong? Thinking about a night at Seldova between Seward and Homer...any in-put? Beginning to feel the reservations need t be over!

If you mean Seldovia, it is only accessible by boat or plane usually from Homer. If you want something between Seward and Homer, you might mean Soldotna. Soldotna and Kenai reminded me of a big suburb since there are shopping plazas and small malls. There are some wonderful areas but you might be surprised by the amount of commercial activity. The Kenai visitors center had a very interesting display. Hobo Jim usually plays at a bar in Soldotna but when we visited he was also doing a fun, corny dinner show at one of the hotels. The food was decent and except for another couple we sat with, most of the attendees were locals. He's quite a character. The waitresses were dressed up like saloon girls. He also plays bars in Seward and Homer if you're there on the right night. He's known for the Iditarod Trail Song which he sings at the Mushers Banquet before the race start. We also enjoyed the 4th of July parade in Kenai. One of the big national magazines did a story on how 4th of July is a big deal in Alaska and covered the parade in Kodiak. Kenai's parade is probably similar. Prior to the parade there's local fundraisers, food vendors etc in a park. Good place to check out the local pie bakers. In Soldotna, there's a nice little group of shops (near the intersection) with a small bookstore, cafe and deli (tables out back). There's a small mall which had a great bead store your teen might like but you'll also find the usual grocery stores and a few chains like Home Depot. Also an excellent outdoor and work clothing store. I almost missed Malfunction Junction, a great gift shop with a lot of locally made items. You may or may not want to visit the basement where they sell furs and have a thought provoking display of a mother and two bear cubs killed not by a hunter but by another bear. The awful name refers to a group of ladies who used to get together to do crafts because their husbands were gone all the time, hunting and fishing. After Soldotna, it's another 1 1/2 hours to Homer and although a lovely drive, it's not as breathtakingly scenic as south of Anchorage along the Turn Again Arm. Sorry I can't recommend lodging, we stayed with relatives.

I did mean Seldovia...thinking of a boat to ...sorry about the spelling error! Thanks for the info!

When we were in Anchorage we stayed at G Street BB. It was Fabulous. Although, you don't have your own kitchen, we had a wonderful breakfast provided for us. The house is right downtown, so we did a lot of walking from the BB to places in downtown.
In the Matanuska area we stayed at Tundra Rose. It was the greatest! We had a little cottage with a small kitchenette. Although only one bed..so hard with a teenager. But maybe another cottage has more. We used MICA to ice climbed and loved it! While in Valdez we kayaked with Pangaea to Shoup Glacier. This was our favorite part of the trip. In Seward we stayed at the Seward Swan Inn. Another wonderful place. Our room had a double bed and a twin and another fabulous host. We did the Kenai Fijord all day tour and loved it. We saw so many animals. No matter where you stay or what you'll do, you'll love it! We drove so much in such a short time and we don't regreat a minute of it!!

CLynnWeg, it looks like you are working hard on the details of your trip. I know you will have a great time. Seldovia is not on the way to Homer from Seward. It is a remote community and the best way to get there is to take a shuttle at 9 am from Homer, spend a day and take a shuttle back at 5 pm. or you may stay there overnight. The quickest way is to take a small plane from Homer but I remember you are not interested in this type of transportation. You have a good plan for July 2nd. Take a ferry from Valdez and stay that night in Seward. To avoid crowds in Seward during marathon you can leave early morning for Homer and make many stops with one of them being Soldotna. If you are interested visit Russian Church and the little village in Kenai. Also the Russian Church in Ninilchik has a breathtaking setting on a bluff.

for shuttle to Seldovia check www.rainbowtours.net