An Alaskan Adventure. The Trip of a Lifetime!
Unfortunately it only took us two visits to make it all happen.
This post was originally published after our second Alaskan adventure trip in 2024 and may be longer than your email app allows.
Going on a Alaskan cruise was a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. Not only do I love cruises, but I’d always wanted to travel to Alaska and see that beautiful land.
Another goal of mine has always been to visit all 50 states. When my husband and I started traveling full-time four years ago, we started working on the few states we had left to accomplish that goal and knew Alaska would be number 50. I was 48 yers old when we took off on our adventure so we started planning to be in Alaska after I turned 50 so that I could hit my 50th state in my 50th year of life.
I was so excited!
But we never dreamed that travel restrictions would still be so strict in some areas in 2022 due to the big C and unfortunately my dream of getting to Alaska and doing a cruise was not to be in my 50th year. 😦
But thankfully things got better in 2023 and we booked an epic journey in Alaska. To say I was excited for this adventure would be one of the biggest understatements of the year! lol!
We wanted to see as much of the state as we could (which would still be a tiny, tiny fraction of it considering how MASSIVE this state is!) so we flew into Fairbanks to start our journey in the north and work our way south.
Fairbanks
We visited a variety of things in the Fairbanks area:
Downtown Fairbanks
Morris Thompson Cultural & Visitors Center
Golden Heart Park/Plaza
North Pole, Alaska, and the Santa Claus House
We even met up with some friends of ours who were stationed at Fort Wainwright and they took us to see the Trans-Alaska pipeline and to a couple of amazing breweries — Silver Gulch and HooDoo Brewing Company. Such a fun time!
Train Tour of Alaska: Fairbanks to Anchorage
After spending a couple of days exploring Fairbanks, our amazing friend dropped us at the train station where we took the train from Fairbanks down to Anchorage with a two night stop in Denali Park on the way. We booked this through Gray Line Alaska and we couldn’t have been more pleased with it. We got to enjoy amazing views on both legs of the journey — all the way to Anchorage.
Some of the awesome things about the train trip were:
Amazing views the whole way south
On the first leg we had the option to go to the upper deck to see the view from the glass dome car
Transportation to our lodging was provided in Denali Park as well as luggage transfer
On the second leg there was dining service on the lower level of our train car and our regular seats were on the upper level with a glass dome roof for amazing viewing
Bar service on the second leg with an amazing bartender
There was a tour guide on the second leg and she made the trip SO fun! She was entertaining, had great information to share, and even played some fun games with us.
Denali Park
As I mentioned, we had a two night stop in Denali Park so that we could explore Denali National Park a little bit. I can tell you right now that I would love to go back and spend a LOT more time here. There is a lot to do in the area and while we made the best of just a couple of days, there was so much more we could have done.
As part of our trip package we were provided a super cool cabin at Denali Park Village. This place was amazing. It had a lodge with rooms in the main building, buildings that were a little more like traditional hotels, and then lots of little cabins — which is what we got. It was so much fun!
During our two day visit we enjoyed a variety of things in the area.
Denali National Park — we visited the visitor center and the learning center and walked around to explore the immediate area. (There is SO much to do here if you have a lot more time!)
Sled Dog Demonstration that is done for FREE in the park- this was AMAZING!
ATV adventure in Healy — also AMAZING!!
Music of Denali Dinner Theater at McKinley Chalet Resort which was included with our trip package — this was so much fun!
Exploring/hiking around Denali Park Village where we stayed.
Anchorage
After our stop in Denali Park Village, we finished our train tour by heading down to Anchorage. In Anchorage we booked a little Airbnb with a lovely lady who was an amazing host. Her home was small and cozy and had all we needed to make for a nice stay. One of the things we loved that we got to do here was borrow her e-bikes and go for some amazing bike rides in the area. I hadn’t ridden a bike in YEARS and it was so fun! Especially since they were electric and helped out a lot.
We mostly walked or rode the bikes to the things we wanted to explore as the house was within walking distance of downtown, but one of the days we were there we rented a car through Turo and got out to explore things that were a little further out. This was our first experience with Turo and we were very pleased with it! It was so much cheaper than a regular rental car and the person renting the car lived within walking distance of our house so we were able to walk over and pick it up that morning and take off on our fun!
The things we loved exploring in Anchorage were:
Downtown Anchorage — shops, breweries, restaurants, etc.
Tony Knowles Coastal Trail — amazing way to enjoy nature and see some incredible views including an eagle and a moose
Potter Marsh — beautiful nature area
Beluga Point — great way to see the Turnagain Arm and some sea life
Resolution Park & James Cook monument — cool history of the area
Earthquake Park — good way to try to view Mt Denali
Kincaid Park — beautiful park area with walking paths to explore
Ship Creek — great way to go up in elevation and see some views of the city and the surrounding area from above
Tour Bus to Seward
We spent almost a week in Anchorage exploring the area and then it was time to move south again. We booked a full day bus excursion with ACT Big Bus and enjoyed incredible views all the way to Seward plus many adventures along the way.
The tour bus excursion included:
Pick up that morning at a hotel that was only a block or two away from the house we stayed in
A couple of stops at scenic viewpoints so we could get out and take pics
A stop at the Wildlife Conservation Center to see many amazing animals
Lunch (provided at the conservations center)
A visit to Exit Glacier, which is part of Kenai Fjords National Park, with time for a hike
Transportation directly to the cruise terminal with luggage transfer
It was an incredible day! We saw so many amazing things and had such a great time.
Our tour guide was fantastic and shared lots of interesting things about the area as we traveled south. Having the chance to get off the bus and explore several areas was also really nice. It made the day so enjoyable and made it feel like we were really experiencing the area rather than just driving through.
The Cruise That Never Left
This is where the story turns sad, and it’s the reason I shared at the beginning that it took two tries to accomplish this trip of a lifetime.
As we drove south to Seward, most of the way we had no cell service. This is a pretty remote area obviously so we were completely disconnected from the outside world and were just enjoying the experience.
Sadly, as we left the National Park and drove into the cruise terminal, we got cell service again and many phones started chiming and receiving notifications at once. While we had been enjoying our day, our cruise ship that was awaiting our arrival had struggled on it’s journey into Seward and we found out that the issue it was having was not going to be fixed in time for our cruise to continue to take place.
It was cancelled.
To say I was devastated would be an understatement. This had been a dream trip of mine for most of my adult life and as amazing as the rest had been, the cruise was to be the highlight of the trip.
I was crushed.
We had arrived at the cruise terminal on Friday afternoon and even though we found out the cruise was cancelled before we even boarded the ship, they did still allow everyone to board and enjoy the ship. We were told we had until Sunday to make arrangements and leave the ship so at least it wasn’t an immediate dismissal.
But, let me tell you, it was complete chaos.
When you have thousands of people expecting to cruise from Seward, Alaska, to Vancouver, British Columbia, it creates quite an issue for travel. We all had to scramble to figure out what to do. We had to get back to Anchorage and then we had to figure out how to get home from there since we had flights booked from Vancouver for a week later.
We did eventually get our wits about us and we were able to put a plan together but it was so upsetting to miss out on the final leg of this amazing trip. Thankfully Royal Caribbean took good care of us all and made the situation as bearable as possible under the circumstances. As I mentioned, we were allowed to stay on the ship free of charge for a couple of days and they provided compensation as follows:
Free drink packages and free internet for everyone on board for the two days until we had to leave
Transportation back to Anchorage
Help with flights if we wanted them to book and reimbursement if we booked ourselves (this didn’t go quite as easily as they said but we did end up getting it all resolved eventually)
Full refund for the cruise
FCC (future cruise credit) for the amount of the cruise fare (less taxes and fees) to be used on another cruise booked within a year
After we got back home and started looking at options to try again, we were able to find the exact same cruise itinerary for May 2024 — and even for a lower cost! — so we booked that with our FCC and planned to go again.
Because this booking was a lower cost, we had additional credit left and we were able to use that toward an additional cruise that we took in July of 2024 out of Florida. That made the situation a little better at least. ;)
The Triumphant Return to Alaska
So fast forward from September 2023 to May 2024 and we were off for the final leg of our dream trip. Again.
We took an epic road trip from Oklahoma over to California, up through California visiting National Parks along the way (Kings Canyon, Sequoia, Yosemite, and Redwood National Parks), and then all the way up the coastal drive to Seattle where we caught a flight to Anchorage.
From Anchorage we took the bus back down to Seward — although this time we did the quick trip that just went directly to the cruise terminal with no stops. We arrived that morning and got to board the ship as soon as the boarding opened.
I’m not going to lie though, this ship (Radiance of the Seas) had some problems again a few weeks before this cruise and I was SO nervous that something was going to go wrong. I don’t think I really relaxed and felt it would be okay until halfway through the cruise at least.
But the cruise was fantastic and went off without a hitch and we enjoyed every moment of it. Our stops were as follows:
Hubbard Glacier
The first full day was just a day of cruising and we got to see Hubbard Glacier. It was also our 33rd wedding anniversary so it was fun to celebrate that while enjoying our time on the ship.
Juneau
In Juneau we enjoyed walking around the downtown area, strolling the boardwalk, and going down to the area to see the humpback whale statue — The Whale Project. Juneau is a beautiful town and one we really enjoyed!
Skagway
In Skagway we booked an excursion to go up into White Pass. We chose the bus option rather than the train — partly for cost but also because it said it was a little more of a tour of the area and you’re able to get out and see things on the way. While it was enjoyable and we had a good time, I think if we did this again we would try the train instead. The weather wasn’t as great at this stop so the views were beautiful but I do wonder what they would have been like if it hadn’t been so cloudy and drizzly.
Once we finished the excursion we enjoyed walking around the town and learning a little of its history. One of the interesting things about this town is that it’s the only town that hasn’t been burned down at some point so it’s all original buildings. It was so cool to walk the old boardwalk sidewalks and see all the old buildings and wide streets. Such a beautiful place!
We checked out the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park which is a museum all about the gold rush, we visited one of the local breweries, we shopped in some of the touristy shops, and we just enjoyed the beautiful views of the town. It’s a fun little place!
Haines
This was a day of two ports so we arrived in Haines in the evening and just spent a few hours there. It was a beautiful place to see as we arrived at the port. I thought we were looking out over the town but it was actually Fort Seward that we saw. The town itself was over to the right and we went to walk around and explore it a little.
This was my least favorite port as there didn’t seem to be much to see or do here — especially so late in the day — but it was still a beautiful place with amazing views.
Icy Strait
This was my FAVORITE stop!! I could write an entire post just about this place (and I just might!) because it was that great and there was so much amazing stuff to see. For the purposes of this post though, I’ll just say that we did a whale watching excursion and saw some incredible wildlife such as sea otters, humpback whales, orcas, and eagles, and we had such a great time.
It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.
We also went ashore and checked out the Adventure Center and the surrounding area, rode the gondola over to another area, hiked the nature trail back to our port area, and we walked along the shoreline and saw incredible sea life. It was truly an amazing experience and one I will never forget.
Ketchikan
This was a really cool little town. We enjoyed walking around the downtown area and checking out the shops, we checked out the Creek Street area and marveled at how it’s all built above the river, and even though it wasn’t the season for the salmon to be running, we enjoyed checking out the salmon ladder area and seeing where they go upstream.
We also explored the Discovery Center and learned about some of the history of the area. Alaska is definitely a fascinating place with a rich history.
To wrap up the cruise we sailed through the Inside Passage and on into Vancouver. Since a lot of this segment took place during the night, we didn’t really get to see a lot of the views and truly enjoy this portion of the cruise. But the views all along the way on this cruise were just incredible. I just couldn’t get over the beauty at every turn.
Even though it took us two tries to get this trip of a lifetime in, it was well worth it. This was an amazing experience and the beauty in Alaska is unmatched in my experiences thus far. There are lots of beautiful places on this earth and Alaska is definitely one of the top in my opinion!
Have you been to Alaska? What was your favorite part?