Plan Your Perfect Alaska Tour or Alaska Cruise Tour Add-On
Whether or not you are planning an Alaska cruise, an Alaska tour provides endless opportunities to explore the breathtaking interior of America's last true frontier.
Most Alaska tours begin in Anchorage, since this beautiful city is by far the easiest to reach by air.
Anchorage is a wonderful small city in an incredible natural setting, and is a hub for inland tours and Alaska adventure travel.
The city itself has many sights and attractions within its limits that warrant a day or two stay.
From Anchorage, the wonders of Mt. McKinley and Denali National Park are just a five hour car, bus, or train ride away.
This makes Anchorage not only a great starting points for tours but also a wonderful hub for exploring lower Alaska, including the Kenai Peninsula and the Prince William Sound region.
The following are the most popular Alaska land tours out of Anchorage:
Denali National Park - Mt. McKinley - Accessible via car, bus, or rail, this breathtaking national park is the size of Massachusetts , or three times the size of Yellowstone.
Seward - Accessible via car, bus, or rail, is a short drive from Anchorage via the scenic Turnagain Arm. A picturesque seaside town.
Talkeetna - Accessible via car, bus, or rail, this small pioneer town is half way between Anchorage and Denali, and offers incredible wilderness and views of majestic Mt. McKinley.
Fairbanks - Accessible via car, bus, rail, or air, Fairbanks is just a 2 hour drive north of Denali. The city has many Gold Rush historical sites.
Valdez - Accessible via car, bus, ferry, and air, this port town on the Prince William sound offers glacier day cruises. The drive from Anchorage is amazing too.
Homer - Accessible via car, bus, or air, this small fishing town is a picturesque 5 hours drive south of Anchorage. A magnet for artists, Homer offers great halibut fishing, bear viewing, and hiking.
Kenai Peninsula - South of Anchorage, includes the beautiful Kenai Fjords National Park.
McCarthy - Accessible via car, bus, or air, this small, quaint town is a 7-8 hour drive from Anchorage and offers access to the beautiful Wrangell St. Elias National Park.
Kennecott - is a mining ghost town and home to the historic Kennecott mine. Adjacent to McCarthy, it is a must-see for visitors to Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.
Wrangell St. Elias National Park - is the largest park in the United States and home to the 18,0008 foot Mt. St. Elias, the second highest peak in the U.S. (after Denali).
Perhaps my favorite interior Alaska tour is Denali National Park.
Many people opt to travel on the Alaska Railroad, which runs from the ports in Seward and Whittier to Denali and even to Fairbanks. An Alaska cruise rail excursion makes a perfect pre or post cruise tour.
It is not a long train ride from Anchorage to Denali (it's about 7 hours), and the park's beauty is really just overwhelming.
Mt. McKinley-Denali itself is simply enormous and breathtaking.
To lend some perspective, Denali has a vertical rise of a staggering 18,000 feet from its base, or 2,000 higher from base to peak than Everest (and with more overall mass than Everest too).
If you are really looking to get away from it all, one place off the beaten path is Kodiak Island.
While it is not on the cruise or ferry routes, Kodiak Island is home to the picture-perfect small city of Kodiak and has some world-class salmon fishing and bear viewing, along with great restaurants and shops too.
There are many great touring options in Alaska. In fact, there are far too many to fit in on just one trip.
However, if you only have time to make one Alaska tour (or if you add on only one Alaska cruise tour), I would suggest going to Denali.
