Originally Posted by
League
My in-laws are wanting to take a dream trip to Alaska for their 40th anniversary and I'm trying to help them make it a possibility using miles and points where possible. They have no reward cards and no loyalty memberships right now, but they're willing to get them. We also have some time - they are looking to go between June and August 2013. They will be traveling from Des Moines (DSM).
I'm thinking AA miles to get them from DSM-ANC, but please tell me if there's a better way. They want to do a short land tour first, either on their own or possibly a guided thing. They want to take a train up to Denali Nat'l Park and hang out there for 2-3 days and then take the cruise. So a RT cruise from SEA or YVR doesn't work so well. It needs to be a OW south-bound itinerary; they can fly home to DSM from wherever.
Any ideas on how to leverage miles/points to help them out beyond just getting free flights?
AA or UA miles will both potentially get you the airline tickets; however you'll have to plan well in advance, and/or be very flexible on dates - capacity into and out of AK in the summer is pretty tight...prices are high...saver awards are scarce. Another thought would be the AS credit card to use the companion certificate; however, that won't get you very close to Des Moines....
Hotel points will not do you a lot of good in Alaska. You will find all of the major chains in Anchorage, a Holiday Inn in Seward, a Best Western in Homer, and no chain hotels at all in Denali.
If a land tour to Denali is in your plans, remember that Fairbanks is also an option - 2 hours from Denali vs. Anchorage which is 4. Rail tours are often sold for Fairbanks - Denali - Anchorage.
Rail tours to Denali are not cheap no matter how you do it, but going independent might be cheaper than adding it to the cruise package. Princess Rail Tours (which can be booked without a Princess Cruise) are often the cheapest option. They run summer promos for Denali tours often 2 for 1 or 50% off. Last year, I went with my family 2 nights r/t from ANC for about $200 per person (triple) - it's tough to drive and find a room for that price... Princess and Holland America run a joint venture on the rail tours, with their own cars pulled by the Alaska Railroad trains (which also sells their own tours, in their own cars) - you'll all end up in the same place, at the same time...just in different cars, staying in different proprietary lodges. Details on Princess rail tours
here. Unfortunately, the summer sales are to sell excess capacity, and don't run until closer to summer...
So...as someone else pointed out, you could wait, and then look for a cheap cruise that lined up with a discounted rail tour and save a bundle...of course, then you'd probably have a hard time finding saver award space on the flights.
Don't discount the possibility of a one way Northbound itinerary...I'm doing my 2nd AK cruise this summer, and both times, the Northbound itineraries have been cheaper than South...probably just a coincidence.
The cruise will depart/arrive in either Seward or Whittier, most likely. Consider this
bus line as a MUCH cheaper alternative to the cruise booked transfer (though the train up from Seward would be fantastic...)
Your cheapest cruises are going to be shoulder season - May and September. May is actually the LEAST rainy month in South East Alaska (where you'll be cruising), so actually an ideal time for the cruise. Prices for your land portion will be much lower as well...however, everything will not be up and running yet. However, be warned that the bus to Wonder Lake in Denali National Park does not start until early/mid June. Also, bus service in the park stops completely by mid-September.
Consider a flight seeing tour of Denali. It is....amazing.
Watch Anchorage groupon for sightseeing options such as flightseeing tours, discounted fishing charters, whale watching tours, etc.