Alaska trip advice, please.

[theodwyn]

Very unexpectedly we were offered a trip to Alaska this summer! My brother works in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, so hopefully we will hook up with him for part of the time.

What else are must sees? Our budget is adequate but not extensive. I think we will fly into Anchorage. We want to do a boat trip along the coast. Maybe take the train up to Denali.

Any tips to make this a great trip would be appreciated. It will be my husband and I and our 2 kids 14, and 12.

 

Thanks,

Wendy

[DIY-DY]

Very unexpectedly we were offered a trip to Alaska this summer! My brother works in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, so hopefully we will hook up with him for part of the time.

What else are must sees? Our budget is adequate but not extensive. I think we will fly into Anchorage. We want to do a boat trip along the coast. Maybe take the train up to Denali.

Any tips to make this a great trip would be appreciated. It will be my husband and I and our 2 kids 14, and 12.

 

Thanks,

Wendy

 

Off the top of my head, (particularly w/ older kids those ages), Kodiak Island comes to mind as one of the places I'd love to see.

Denali, of course.

I'm not a fisherman, but I would *love* to catch some salmon in Alaska! :)

And if I had the chance, I'd stay at Shannon's B&B (shanmar, on the forums) for at least one night.

 

What a delightful surprise for your family! Have a fantastic trip, and take oodles and oodles of pictures.

Dy

[Karen sn]

But I stayed in Homer the entire time. That's at the end of the road and is known as "The Halibut Capital of the World."

 

In July (usually last weekend) they have their "Concert on the Lawn" and if you volunteer to work you get a free t-shirt and admission. We worked 2 hours I think. The music was awesome, the people amazing. I met Otz Kilcher (Jewel's dad). There were kids everywhere. It is fun.

 

 

Basically - if you like small town atmosphere with alot of culture - this is a good place. There is a small theatre out on the spit and the community did Midsummer Night's Dream - my daughter was 3 and sat through the entire thing completely enthralled.

 

It's a VERY family oriented town. ESPECIALLY in the summer.

 

Here are a few links. If you call the chamber of commerce they will send you a nice booklet on the businesses and things to do.

 

http://homeralaska.com/

 

http://www.akms.com/htguide/

 

http://www.homeralaska.org/index.html

 

http://www.ci.homer.ak.us/

[theodwyn]

Thanks, ladies. We are really excited, but still in shock. My brother has worked there summers for several years now and it was a dream that we could visit him sometime and see the sights, but the reality of life and the need to replace aging vehicles had put that dream on hold--until now.

Wendy

[AKshanmar]

I'd love to help you plan your trip...it is what I do for a living you know!

 

How long will you have? Where exactly is your brother based? Glennallen? Valdez is a pretty spot, and a nice spot to take a boat / glacier /wildlife trip in Prince William Sound.

 

Of course you have to visit me at my B&B. We have enough around here to keep you busy for a few days.

 

Denali is slightly overrated. (Shhhhh. ) But most people go there. Sometimes I just send my guests to Talkeetna, where you can usually see the mountain, so you can say you did! The train is cool, but very expensive. Everytime I think about doing it, I just can't do it. It is much cheaper to just drive. There are pictures of my recent winter drive up the Parks Hwy on my blog, if you scan down a bit.

 

The Kenai Pennisula, including Homer, is absolutely gorgeous. It just depends on how much time you have.

 

Feel free to email me, shannon@pioneerridge.com, or call me.