Alaska now

Hi everyone....we finished our week long independent tour today. We take the train to Whittier in the morning. What an adventure we had. Thank you BQ for your advice and encouragement. My husband wanted to do the cruisetour and I talked him out of it. Now he is so happy we did it this way. Denali was fabulous....we saw bears, caribou, sheep. The best was a stand off between a mom bear and cubs who were feasting on a carcass, and a grey wolf who wanted a piece of the action. The mom was up on her hind paws and the wolf was put off for a bit. She came back and tried again to no avail. The wolf hung around our bus for about 40 minutes. We watched her kill two ground squirrels, then she just walked along the road for a while. It was great. We took the summit flight over McKinley....indescribable. The weather has been as unpredictable as everyone says. In Denali it snowed and sleeted. The next day we had t-shirts on. Crazy. We have been staying in B&Bs and will give a better report when I have more time. We are looking forward to the cruise as we are tired of packing and unpacking and hauling the suitcases around. Thanks again for all your help. I will give more details when I get back.

Hi everyone....we finished our week long independent tour today... My husband wanted to do the cruisetour and I talked him out of it. Now he is so happy we did it this way.

When you get back - please post again with the details of what "this way" was. We just came back from a cruise only, and I want to get started on a return trip with a land portion, Denali, etc. Would like to go independant, and will look forward to your details.

Thanks,

Terry

yes please post re "this way"

we are planning our trip to alaska for next summer now

You have made a superior choice considering independent.

You will see and do much more of your interests and way more of Alaska. :) Some factors to consider- allow enough time, this is an underestimated point. 7 days allows Seward and Denali Park. Denali Park - via bus in with Fish Creek my min. recommendation. Don't consider any shorter, you are best with at least 2 nights here.

Ships coming into Seward offer plenty. Top recommendation from me are the Kenai fjords boat tours- at least 6 hours on the water. Varied wildlife opportunities, and close up extended glacier viewing. Take a look at Anchorage too, worth a day. So consider, 2 days in Seward, 1 Talkeetna, 2 Denali Park, 1-2 Anchorage- depending on departure/arrival.

Head to your library, take out Alaska travel books, The Milepost (order a new copy after next March.).

Do your homework, consider Alaska B&B's just excellent experiences. Try new things.

I just returned from a northbound trip and everyone I spoke to taking a land tour with RCI, did NOT know what Denali Park tour they were on, which is very important in my opinion. Most were on 3 day add ons, a big mistake since it is all in transit.

So make choices right for you. I can offer great ideas for independent Alaska touring if of interest? Just post.

yes please post re "this way"

we are planning our trip to alaska for next summer now

I believe the poster meant that they are glad they decided to go an independent tour i.e. "This way" vs. the cruisetour.. that being said there are quite a few posts here on the boards who are just as glowing about their cruise tours.

There is NO right or wrong... what is superior to one is not necessarily superior to another.. so you need to consider the amount of planning you want to want to put into it, your interests, time frame etc. etc. Independent is not for everyone and cruise tours aren't either.. If you hate schedules and don't want to have everything planned for you a tour is not the best option for you. Either way 5-7 days is ideal minimum time to spend. If you have less, don't completely discard the land tour but if you have more than 5-7 days, you will love it!