Originally Posted by SRQ Guy
Thinking way ahead, my wife and I are thinking of going to Alaska for a week in May. We'd arrive on a Saturday afternoon and depart the following Sunday morning. I'm thinking of flying to ANC and visiting Denali for two days and Seward and Kenai Fjords for a day. Is this doable, or too ambitious?
Also, does the bus trip into Denali happen during May? We're thinking of the 13th to 21st or the 20th to 28th.
Any other must-sees on a 7 day trip centering around ANC?
Alternatively, what would your ultimate 7 day itinerary be in Alaska, flying into ANC, FAI, KTN, or JNU? I'm having a hard time deciding if ANC is even the best place to start/end the trip.
[edited to add: I am aware that Alaska is far too big to see in a week. I just want to figure out the best slice to sample for a week. I plan on returning eventually.
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May can be a gorgeous month up here; in fact, May and June usually contain our best weather vs. the normally rainier month of August.
Denali usually doesn't kick into gear for tourism until right around the Memorial Day weekend. Park concessionaire shuttle busses and tours usually run around then with major park hotels opening about a week before. If you have a car, you can stay north of the park headquarters in Healy which has several nice low-key lodges and bed and breakfasts.
The boat trips into Prince William Sound (Whittier departure) and Kenai Fjords (Seward) do start going earlier in the month. One operator out of Seward runs year round (usually confined to Resurrection Bay trips) while another starts outstanding whale watch excursions in April.
If you only have a week, Anchorage is an excellent base. Hotel rates will be on shoulder season as should rental cars. One of the best drives is down the Seward Highway to Seward (a national scenic highway) with stops at the Alyeska Resort/Girdwood and the Begich-Boggs visitor center at Portage Lake/Glacier (probably only open on weekends until later in May). Continue to Seward and visit the Sealife Center and Exit Glacier (probably spend the night in Seward - small town and easy to get around).
Afterwards, continue down the Sterling Highway to the town of Homer, one of the prettiest places in Alaska. Plenty of accommodations as well. You might want to take a day trip over to Seldovia.
As far as Anchorage, we have the Alaska Native Heritage Center and the Anchorage Museum, both of which can consume several hours. Further north is is agricultural community of Palmer in the Matanuska valley as well as rapidly growing Wasilla where you can visit the Iditarod museum. Further north on the Parks highway (under 2 hours) is the spur road to Talkeetna, where planes leave taking climbers to Denali. If ever there was an inspiration for the Northern Exposure tv show, this is it.
The scenic Alaska Railroad runs trips on weekends until mid-May when they go into full operation. Trips are then offered to Denali, Seward, and Whittier (the latter destinations the source of small boat cruises).
An extra bonus is that airfares can be significantly cheaper before the tour season arrives although flight options are usually a bit more limited until the airlines add extra flights for the summer.
I hope this information helps. If you need to know more, a good source is the Anchorage Convention and Visitors Bureau at
www.anchorage.net