Newbie Alaska Itinerary
 

We are going to Alaska for the first time YA!
After many hours researching and day dreaming, we came up with this itinerary for Sept 8-15 2005.

9/8- arrive at ANC at 9 pm. stay over night
9/9- 9/12 seward, cruise, exit glacier, sealife, hiking, kayaking, sightweeing

9/12-9/15 stay around ANC area, sightsee, hatcher's pass, portage, talkeeta flight seeing, indepence mine,

9/15- flight leaves at 8:50pm

Does this sound ok? Is 3 nights too much in Seward? Also there is a cruise ship on 9/11 and will there be too many people there?

I thought about spending 2 nights in Seward and one night in Homer and the rest up by ANC area.

We are not into fishing, we are mostly in sightseeing, nature, animals, glaicers and hikers.

Any thoughts or comments would be very helpful!

We went to Anchorage a few years ago and thought it was an amazing place.
We stayed in the Anc. area the whole week and drove to Seward one day to do a marine cruise on the Gulf of Alaska. It was cold in June, but a terrific experience. I think 3 days in Seward is too long. It's a small place.

If you like to hike, go the the Eagle River Nature Center. There are several different hikes and walks you can do.There is a wonderful Sat. morning market in Anchorage, with tons of stuff made there. The Russian Orthodox Church and grave yard in Eklutna was interesting. We took a flight out of Talkeetna and landed on a glacier at the foot of Mt. mcKinley and that was unforgettable! Take some time and go to the Alaska Heritage Center in Anchorage - very interesting!

Alaska is an unforgettable place - bigger than you can possible imagine - and we had an outstanding week there.

i think a nigt in homer is worth it. i would day trip to seldovia from there only plane or boat will get you there, you can get this set up at the homer spit. there are some hikes around the area and just going along the beaches is great. eagles roost in trees at the shore.

Two nights in Seward is probably enough. It's about a 4 hour drive from there to Homer. The Pratt Museum is wonderful. The views overlooking the Spit are fantastic. Homer has a distinct personality, just like Seward does. And Talkeetna. On your way back to Anchorage, keep in mind it's about a 5 hour drive. Portage is south of Anchorage so you will want to stop there on your way to Seward or when heading back to Anchorage. You may want to stop in Soldotna for a break in driving from Homer to Anchorage.

Two nites in SEward would be enough given you time. Nice drive down from Anc with time for stops at Potter Marsh, Portage Glacier, Summit Lake. In Seward, you have Exit Glacier, Seavey Family Ididarod sled dog and kennel tour. Strongly recomm 6hr Kenai Fjords NP Tour. Lots of great scenery, glaciers, wildlife, maybe whales, and tons of sea birds including puffins.
You could spend another night in Seward or go on and drive down to Homer, get settled, walk the spit and decide what else you want to do there. The bay tours are supposed to be nice. Bear tours to Katmai NP are great, but expensive. Drive back to Homer would be at least 6hrs. If you decided not to go to Homer, you could find several other things to do in Anc area, As mentioned, the Spirit Houses at Eklutna, musk ox farm, alaska native heritage ctr, eagle river nature walk. Talkeetna is nice and primary take off point for Mt McKinley flt tours. This is about 3hrs from Anc, so if you decide to do this, you wouldn't have time for Homer. Rust Flying Service from Anc does flt tours to different places also. Send for Anc visitor guide from website.

I agree 2 nights is probably enough time in Seward. Be aware however, wildlife is in transition, sea birds will probably be gone.
Homer is worth 2 nights in my opinion, again plenty to see and do there. It is 3 1/2 hours from Seward and 4 from Anchorage.

Talkeetna is 2 hours from Anchorage, and I would definately suggest an overnight there rather all the time in Anchorage. Variety is great in Alaska. :)

Thanks for the awesome tips. I think we are gonna stay 2 nights in seward, one or 2 nights in Homer and the rest in ANX or near it.

Has anybody stay or experience Murphy's Motel in Seward? We are looking for a room with a balcony with a view. We had one in Lake Tahoe and it was wonderful.

I agree, I'd skip the third night in Seward and spend some time in Home. Even if you don't fish, there is plenty to do - beach walking, Bay crusing, a trip to Seldovia (sp?), Kayacking, Biking etc.

I would also recommend stopping in Coopers Landing on the way to Homer for a River Float trip.

There's also a great Glacier cruise in Whitter on Prince William sound (between Anchorage and Seward)thats worth it.

Have a great time.