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One day in Anchorage


Cookiegirl1329
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We are a small group and have ONE day in Anchorage before our cruise. What is a must see or do? This is our first trip to Alaska and w are really struggling with finding and booking excursions for the land portion of our Princess cruise. We would appreciate any and all suggestions.

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how many is a small group ? what are your interests? physical abilities? do you all have to be together? would you consider renting a car for the day? private tour ? budget ?

 

 

There are MANY MANY options but you need to provide more information.

 

 

Did you look at the city web site for suggestions ? https://www.anchorage.net/

Or look at past trip reports to see what other travelers did and enjoyed.

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It all depends on what floats your boat. There are numerous shuttles to various attractions that leave from the Log Cabin Visitor Center...You can take a shuttle to the Alaskan Native Heritage center...A wonderful place to learn about our Native cultural groups...You can walk 4 blocks to an excellent museum, you can walk across the street to the public land building and see free movies about Alaska, you can take a trolley...not a HOHO...and learn a bit about Anchorage...You can take a ride on the Big Swig and go to the breweries. We have lots of them here..You can go to the zoo with a free shuttle...Our zoo has all northern animals and is dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of them. You can take a tour down to Turnagin arm and go hiking and catch the next one back...Lots to do...just have to decide which one you would like....Oh, you can do glacier flying, and dog sledding not far from Anchorage.

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We took the train to Seward, did a full-day Kenai Fjords Cruise and took the bus back. It was a long day, but very enjoyable.

 

That would be an excruciating long day. The Alaska Railroad has a round trip package that includes a day cruise out of Seward as well and the reviews have been good. Just too long for us.

 

If the cruise departs from Whittier, getting early transportation there on the day of the cruise would allow for a day glacier trip before boarding and make for a lot less travel time.

https://www.phillipscruises.com/cruises/26-glacier-cruise.php

 

If you just want to stay in town there are many things of interest.

http://anchoragedowntown.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Things-To-Do-in-Downtown-2017.pdf

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check out VisitAnchorage.net....There is a list on there...of things you can do in 4 hours, 8 hours and 6 hours....It has a wealth of information...What you can do is more limited by your pocketbook than by 4 hours. Remember it is light up through midnight here..and you can fly wherever....:) :) :)

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Hatcher’s Pass and Independence Mine were a blast to visit. Highly recommend them.

 

+1 on this suggestion. Loved both of them. The AK museum in town is also a great place to visit if you are into museum.

 

Re the Alaska Native Heritage Center - I was disappointed in that place.

 

DON

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If the cruise departs from Whittier, getting early transportation there on the day of the cruise would allow for a day glacier trip before boarding and make for a lot less travel time.

https://www.phillipscruises.com/cruises/26-glacier-cruise.php)

 

How does that work when you have luggage? I will be boarding the Coral Princess from Whittier and would very much like to do the day glacier cruise before boarding the ship. Are there early morning transfers from Anchorage to Whittier on the day of the cruises, a Wednesday for the Coral? Alaska Bus Lines leaves ANC at 3:00pm, too late for the day cruise.I see Phillips cruises has a day coach transfer, but it is RT. I would need a one way to Whittier early enough to make the glacier cruise at 12:30pm.

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How does that work when you have luggage? I will be boarding the Coral Princess from Whittier and would very much like to do the day glacier cruise before boarding the ship. Are there early morning transfers from Anchorage to Whittier on the day of the cruises, a Wednesday for the Coral? Alaska Bus Lines leaves ANC at 3:00pm, too late for the day cruise.I see Phillips cruises has a day coach transfer, but it is RT. I would need a one way to Whittier early enough to make the glacier cruise at 12:30pm.

 

The Alaska Railroad makes a trip to Whittier each day. It's timed to meet the day cruises that all leave around 12-12:30. When you drop your luggage at the train depot you let the handlers know that it needs to go to your ship and it will be sent to your cabin.

https://www.alaskarailroad.com/ride-a-train/schedules

 

In addition to Philips, Major Marine also has 2 day cruises out of Whittier.

https://majormarine.com/tour-areas/prince-william-sound/

 

There may be another as well. Check the Whittier Alaska Chamber of Commerce web site.

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  • 1 month later...
What is the location for these shuttles in Anchorage mentioned by "laughing husky"?

 

Not laughing husky, but I can answer that since I was just there and took the shuttle to the zoo. 4th and F Streets, downtown. Look for the Visitors Information Center, and the shuttle stop is right in front.

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Earthquake Park was very interesting to the two of us from SoCal. It showed the quick devestation that can be wrought by Mother Nature. There was an old, old movie in the downtown area, then we drove out to the area ourselves.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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The Alaska Railroad makes a trip to Whittier each day. It's timed to meet the day cruises that all leave around 12-12:30. When you drop your luggage at the train depot you let the handlers know that it needs to go to your ship and it will be sent to your cabin.

https://www.alaskarailroad.com/ride-a-train/schedules

 

In addition to Philips, Major Marine also has 2 day cruises out of Whittier.

https://majormarine.com/tour-areas/prince-william-sound/

 

There may be another as well. Check the Whittier Alaska Chamber of Commerce web site.

 

I like these cruises so much that I did the Phillips 26 Glacier Cruise yesterday r/t Anchorage and the Major Marine trip to Surprise Glacier today before I boarded the Coral Princess. Very easy to do. The train leaves Anchorage at 9:45, and the reps from the cruise companies are waiting for you as you leave the train.

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We are in Anchorage now. We did the trolley tour; it was ok, but it would not be my first choice if I were more limited on our time here. A local person we met suggested the zoo, so we are planning to go but haven’t been yet.

 

You didn’t say when your trip is going to be. We aren’t able to visit Hatcher Pass Independence Mine since it doesn’t open until mid-June. Make sure to check opening dates if going to any of the National parks since they don’t all open (or close) at the same time.

 

Yesterday, we drove out to Palmer and Wasilla and had a blast. We had more things we could do but had to take it slow due to my mother’s mobility issues. We did the Colony House Museum (good for history buffs but little kids would be bored) and the Reindeer Farm in Palmer. The Reindeer Farm is great for all ages. My mom was able to get around using a walker, and they drove her out to the furthest pen. There were kids, adults, older people, visitors, and Alaskans on our tour, and we all loved it! You will see reindeer, a bison, a yak, a moose, and elk. And you will have an opportunity to interact with several of them. Great picture opportunities. If you or any of your crew love animals, it’s a great time. They also had some pigs (maybe just one — not sure as we didn’t go look up close) and chickens. Just as we were leaving, we saw the horses running down the side of the mountain (I saw mountain but Alaskans might say hill) into the corral.

 

In Wasilla, we went to the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Headquarters. This isn’t a very long stop. The museum area is small, but there is an interesting 30 minute video about the sport of sled racing focusing mainly on the dogs. They have the trophies from the Iditarod there as well. The best part was holding the 7 week old husky puppies and then taking a cart ride pulled by a team of grown huskies. The rides are short but a ton of fun and only $10 per person. Everyone was very nice and willing to answer any questions you have. However, this is not a musher’s camp. If you want to talk to a musher, or hear personal stories of running the Iditarod, there are other places. However, it’s a good option within driving distance of Anchorage for a quick trip to have a uniquely Alaska experience. This is a great stop if you love dogs.

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