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Reflections Lake on the drive from Anchorage to Talkeetna
Ready for an awe-inspiring Alaskan adventure filled with glacier hikes and dog sledding, whale-watching and flightseeing, the old-fashioned charm of towns you can only access by air or sea, and the breathtaking beauty of snow-covered peaks and wildflower valleys perfectly reflected in clear blue waters? Overwhelmed with it all and looking for help? Read on for my most popular Alaska itinerary, including our experience the summer of 2024!
Vacationing in Alaska
Tourist season in Alaska runs all summer long (May-September with the peak in July/August). Don’t expect summer weather, but you’ll get the warmest weather Alaska has to offer. You’ll also get daylight until long past your bedtime, which allows you to make full use of your time there. Keep in mind that whales (humpback, gray, orca) like Alaska summers as well as mosquitos. Yay for whales, boo for mosquitos!
Alaska is so vast that it’s best to start with geography for grounding. At more than 650,000 square miles - bigger than Texas, California and Montana combined! - there's a lot of ground to cover. The first map shows the most popular tourist stops - Anchorage and points north to Denali and then southeast on an Inside Passage cruise to Vancouver, Canada. The second map shows all of Alaska for scale.
Inside Passage route + Anchorage to Denali (left), Alaska map (right)
A popular and efficient itinerary for an Alaska experience is an Anchorage–Talkeetna–Denali land tour, then back to Anchorage (Whittier) for an Inside Passage cruise. For this itinerary, you'll need at least 10 days and several modes of transportation - cruise ship plus car/bus/train - to see even a fraction of it all. My family and six other families did this Alaska itinerary summer 2024, and it was absolutely amazing!
Some of our Alaska travel buddies on our Skagway excursion to the Yukon
Let's explore the major stops on the list to understand all the adventures that lie therein.
Anchorage
Anchorage views
Most people start their Alaska adventure in Anchorage, so we’ll start there as well. While Anchorage has incredible beauty surrounding the city, most people use it as a jumping off point vs. spending a lot of time in the city itself. My husband lived in Anchorage when we met, so I spent a week in Alaska before we were married. In fact, we got engaged on top of Flattop Mountain - see our reenactment 18 years later below! Anchorage has beautiful trails and vistas as well as some great restaurants - don't miss F Street for the halibut chunks! However, I wouldn’t spend more than a day or two there unless you are making Anchorage your home base for day trips like we did.
Top five picks for Anchorage
Bike the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail (an 11-mile hilly trail). One day we did regular bikes and regretted it. We came back with our friends a couple days later and rented e-bikes so we could fly up the hills. The kids ventured off the trail for a hike by the water, and other friends saw a bear on the trail! Definitely our favorite activity in Anchorage!
Hike Chugach State Park or Flattop Mountain (about 30 minutes from Anchorage).
Dogsledding in Willow at the home of Alaskan Husky Adventures (1.5 hours from Anchorage)
Drive to Girdwood to the Alyeska Resort (45 minutes from Anchorage). Check out the views on the Alyeska Tramway, pan for gold at Crow Creek Mine, hike the Winner Creek Trail or North Face Trail, and snowmobile on a glacier. See wildlife living their best life at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.
Watch grizzly bears catch salmon in mid-air at Brooks Falls. Only accessible by plane, you can do a day trip from Anchorage and fly to King Salmon, AK and then catch a float plane to Brooks Lodge.
Snowmobiling on a glacier, Flattop Mountain 18 years apart, F Street for halibut chunks, and biking the coastal trail
For our dogsledding adventure, we drove up to Willow to the home of Alaskan Husky Adventures, a family-run Iditarod team and kennel. Matthew Failor has been racing the Iditarod for years and hosts private sled dog rides on his farm as part of the dogs’ training. In the summer, you ride in custom carts. In the winter, you’re on actual sleds on the snow. Surprisingly, they have more tourists in the winter! We learned the importance of experiencing an actual Iditarod family versus a dogledding tourism business.
Both the sun and Denali’s peak were out, and the dogs were excited to run! The Failors have around 55 dogs who are part of the family along with their team of mushers in training. As soon as the carts come out, the dogs (Alaskan Huskies) start howling and jumping for joy because they want to get picked to run! Once they’re all strapped in, the musher gives the command (Hike!) and we’re off! The dogs know their right and left (Gee and Haw), and would go so much faster if the musher wasn’t holding the brake a little. Because the weather was warm and the dogs love to run in below zero temps, we stopped twice on the trail so they could be hosed down. At the end of the run, the dogs walk right into their swimming pools to cool off. A day we'll never forget!
Dogsledding in Willow at Alaska Husky Adventures, a family-run Iditarod training center
Talkeetna
Talkeetna, a charming small town midway between Anchorage and Denali, is famous for Denali views and flightseeing. Sitting at the confluence of three rivers – the Susitna, Talkeetna, and Chulitna - Talkeetna's water adventures are almost as famous as its flightseeing.
Top five picks for Talkeetna
On your drive to Talkeetna, make sure you do all the vista stops along the way - Eklutna Tailrace, Mirror Lake, Reflections Lake.
The best way to see the grandeur of Denali National Park and the Alaskan Range is by flightseeing. We didn't have the time to make the drive all the way up to Denali, so we experienced it from above, and it was spectacular!
Watersports are the name of the game in this town of three rivers - kayaking, rafting, and jet boating provide a range of exploration options!
Quite possibly the most fun way to experience a panoramic view of the Alaska Range is by ziplining high above Talkeetna.
Stroll Talkeetna's Main Street, a two-block street with cafes, art shops, restaurants, and microbreweries. Our favorite stop was Mountain High Pizza Pie - yum!
Charming Talkeetna and Reflections Lake on the way
We spent an amazing 12 days in Alaska, but our best excursion by far was flightseeing Denali with a glacier landing! We departed from Talkeetna where the weather was cloudy, but as we neared Denali, the skies opened up to a brilliant blue. Views from the rickety plane were breathtaking! At times it seemed like we could reach out and touch the mountains we were flying so close - an illusion, according to our Richard Dreyfus lookalike pilot. The ride was a little difficult because of the thin air (the pilot had to wear oxygen mask when we flew high enough to view Denali's peak) and with all the turns as he tried to show both sides of the plane the amazing views. But finally, we were landing on a glacier. The planes have skis attached to the wheels, so it skied down!
Exiting the plane, we walked out onto the snow where the only sound was the crunch of our boots and the squeals of the kids. It felt like we were walking on the moon. Walled in on one side by a mountain thousands feet high and the ice thousands feet deep, we were all dumb-struck and didn’t know what to do. Thankfully, our kids did and started snowball fighting on a glacier. The memories of this day will last a lifetime!
Flightseeing Denali and landing on a glacier all by ourselves equals snowball fight!
Denali
Denali National Park, Alaska’s most visited attraction, induces awe with its height (highest in North America and technically highest in the world), spectacular scenery, and a plethora of wildlife. You have many options for getting to Denali from Anchorage: driving is quickest (five hours) and it gives you maximum flexibility to take side trips or stop along the way. You’ll also have the option of staying in Healy where it’s less touristy than the park lodging.
If you book a tour or a cruisetour to Denali, you’ll travel by motorcoach and/or train. Either option will take longer than driving yourself, but you can relax and enjoy the scenery. The train isn’t cheap, so you can train one way and motorcoach the other to save money and experience more. Many people see the train as a once-in-a-lifetime luxury because of glass dome cars with spectacular views, onboard dining, and wilderness you’ll only see by train.
Denali, "The High One", by air, rail and road
Once you get to Denali, if you want to ride the entire 92-mile park road both ways, count on a 13-hour tour on a school bus. The view at Wonder Lake is supposedly worth the drive!
Top five picks for Denali
Ride all or part of the Denali park road. If you want the full experience, take the 13-hour "school bus" tour of all 92 miles.
Hike on your own or with a tour. Denali hiking is not for novices, but there are several nature trails you can do on your own – Taiga Loop Trail, McKinley Station Loop Trail, Rock Creek Trail, Triple Lakes Trail, Savage River Trail, and Mt. Healy Overlook Trail.
Get out on the Nenana River for a scenic float, whitewater rafting, or kayaking.
Mountain bike on the first 15 miles of the park road, which are paved. The best time to bike is late evening when buses have stopped for the day.
Visit Husky Homestead for a dog sled experience.
Inside Passage
We’re now beyond driveable tourist spots as we head into the Inside Passage route, which is easiest to experience on a cruise. The Inside Passage of Alaska is a unique place featuring coastal rainforests, glacial fjords, and of course, lots of wildlife.
Photo credit: Charlie Kessler (age 15)
Hubbard Glacier
Our first two days of the cruise were glacier days. First up was 7-mile-wide Hubbard Glacier, where we got off the big boat to get on a little boat to get up close and personal with the glacier. This was an optional (and expensive excursion), but we all thought it was worth it! We saw glacier calving, drank glacier ice, and hung out with friends. And we actually got to see our kids!
Photo credit: Charlie Kessler
Glacier Bay National Park
One of the most remote and stunning places you'll visit is Glacier Bay National Park, with over 3 million acres of unspoiled wilderness. If you’re cruising the Inside Passage, make sure Glacier Bay is on your itinerary. Only two cruise ships are allowed in the park per day - we were lucky to be the only ones when we were there.
Our Glacier Bay day of cruising started out grey and cold, but as we entered the bay, the skies opened up and the sun came out. We spent the day hanging out on the sky deck enjoying the views together, getting sunburnt, eating and then eating again, and eventually lounging in the hot tub.
Glacier Bay National Park
Skagway
The gold rush town of Skagway has all the historic sights packed into a few blocks - an easy walk from the cruise ship dock. The town is charming despite a jewelry store every other shop, which is true of all the Alaska port cities. How they all stay in business I have no idea.
Top picks for Skagway
Travel by train to the Yukon on the White Pass Rail – a fully narrated three-hour mountain-climbing, cliff-hanging route.
Take a guided walk through Jewell Gardens and watch glassblowing (or try it yourself!).
Take the ferry to Haines for a hike and float in the Eagle Preserve.
Skagway White Pass Rail, Yukon suspension bridge, and small-town charm
The White Pass Rail excursion has many different variations, but I recommend the one we chose because you experience the Yukon, too. Our driver took us up to the Yukon, pausing along the way for photos before stopping across the Canadian border at the Yukon Suspension Bridge. Mounties even came on board to check our passports! Once again, the skies opened up upon arrival to reveal brilliant blues and full sun. The views from the bouncy bridge were breathtaking, and we all made it across with no problems.
The star of the show, though, was the White Pass Rail. This train defies gravity, hugging the mountain on one side with miles of cliffs on the other. I spent much of the ride out on the platform with the wind in my hair and butterflies in my stomach as we raced down the mountain. The views were jaw-dropping!
Juneau
This charming and walkable downtown makes exploring easy. Take the tram up for beautiful views and make sure to get a glimpse of the breaching whale statue. Mendenhall Glacier, the most easily accessible glacier in Alaska, is nestled against the ice blue Mendenhall Lake and is one of Juneau’s top attractions with trails and waterfalls.
Top picks for Juneau
Explore Mendenhall Glacier on your own or book a guided hike. To get up close, take the Juneau Icefields helicopter tour.
Kayak across the lake and get a close view of the glacier itself or experience whale watching by kayak. See Mendenhall Glacier up close and personal on a Mendenhall Lake Canoe Tour.
Juneau is known for whale watching in the summer. We did a combo whale watch/Mendenhall Glacier excursion, although I wish we had kayaked or gone out on a canoe instead.
Mt. Roberts is a nice hike to get a bird’s eye view of Juneau. You can hike up Mt. Roberts and then take the tramway down. For an easy trail with beautiful views and waterfalls, hike Perseverance Trail.
Top: Juneau tram views and whalewatching
Bottom: Mendehall Glacier waterfall 18 years apart, breaching whale statue
Ketchikan
Known for its totem poles, art, hilly streets, and salmon fishing, Ketchikan is a well-loved stop on the Inside Passage route. Charming Creek Street, the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show plus a wide range of natural adventures made this our favorite cruise port.
Top five picks for Ketchikan
Ketchikan is considered the Salmon Capital of the World, so salmon fishing is a must! However, the guys in our group had no luck at all! If you want a sure thing, You can help haul a 700-pound king crab pot at the Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour (from Deadliest Catch) including eagle feeding.
Kayak out to Orcas Cove for a prime location to view wildlife. Or take a boating expedition to the Tongass National Forest and see bald eagles, bears, and whales.
Go snorkeling in Alaska! Don a wet suit and snorkel through the calm tide pools and submerged rock walls around Mountain Point. See sunflower stars, bright blood stars, sea cucumbers, and more.
Catch a floatplane and land in the remote wilderness of Misty Fjords National Monument - this excursion was a close second to our Denali glacier landing.
Experience a taste of Ketchikan’s lumber history at the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show.
Top: Ketchikan's famous charm
Bottom: Misty Fjords floatplane with remote landing - spectacular!
Our family vacation in Alaska is one we will never forget! When you're ready for your own Alaskan adventure, reach out to Show Them the World and we will put our amazing experience to work for you!
Heather Vergara is a former PepsiCo marketing executive who left the corporate world to be a Mom and never found her way back. Instead, she focused on her passion for travel and adventure and created Show Them the World, a travel concierge service for busy families longing to reconnect and see the world together. In less than four years, she's helped more than 300 families experience Hawaii, Alaska, Costa Rica, France, England, Greece, Italy, Croatia, Portugal, Spain, the Caribbean, National Parks, and more to come!
Heather has an MBA in marketing from Indiana University, a Digital Marketing Executive Education certificate from Columbia University, and a BA in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She lives with her husband, two kids, and two furry dogs in Zionsville, Indiana.
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