Originally Posted by Gardyloo

Answers -

1. Yep, it's expensive. Worth it. Alaska is not a cheap vacation.

2. The Harding Icefield hike runs along the side of Exit Glacier. It's a very steep trail and be sure to take weather protection as things can go south really quickly around glaciers and icefields. Also watch for black bears which can be plentiful thereabouts (make a lot of noise.)

4. No, the Whittier cruises travel around the western edge of Prince William Sound and up College Fjord (numerous tidewater glaciers.) It's a long way from Kenai Fjords NP. Get a map. The Kenai Fjords have lots of wildlife and a few glaciers; the Whittier cruises more glaciers and less wildlife.

5. Highly unlikely; you'd need to be where it gets to full darkness, which in August is hard to accomplish. It's past "midnight sun" time, but twilight lasts a LONG time.

6. See answer no. 1. How often do you expect to put a toe in the Arctic Ocean? Be sure to add the (absent) cost of the car for two days and a night in an Anchorage hotel into the math. You could also look at Nome, a fascinating gold rush town on the Bering Sea, instead of Kotz. Lodging is probably cheaper, maybe airfare too, and it's equally fascinating in its own way. You could rent a vehicle in Nome and get out into the tundra - muskoxen, bears...

Homer - sure, Homer is fun. If you go there, try to get across Kachemak Bay to the picturesque village of Seldovia. BTW Cooper Landing is basically a wide spot in the road. If you're looking for interesting detours off the Seward Hwy, pop down into Hope, an old mining village and the only town on the south shore of Turnagain Arm. There are a couple of great hikes - easy to hard - that leave Hope.