Alaska's Best Excursions: A Guide to Your Ultimate Adventure!
Are you planning a trip to Alaska? We have spent the summer exploring Alaska and the Hanks are ready to be your personal travel guide. In this blog we’re bringing you great tips, secrets, and guides to help you plan the perfect Alaska experience.
This post may contain affiliate links and we may earn a small commission when you click on the links at no additional cost to you!Excursion Insights- What You Need To Know!
Our travels through Alaska have given us great insight into what to expect, well most of the time. The weather is one thing that surprised us. You have to be prepared for rain and lots of temperature changes. It is best to dress in layers and have proper footwear so that you can enjoy your experience and not freeze to death! As you plan to book your excursions make sure you read the small print. There are many circumstances that can cause a tour company to make changes to your excursions. It is best to be adaptable and flexible during your travels to Alaska. Not having too high of expectations is the best way to take on your excursions. We thought we could just go out and take the paddleboards to see some whales, sea lions, otters, and even glaciers. We quickly realized that we couldn’t just go out there and find them. It is best to rely on the people who know where to find the sea life or wildlife you are interested in seeing.
Make the most of your experiences!
When To Book Your Excursions?
We actually booked our excursions the night before! Do we recommend that? NO! We would recommend that you begin looking a month or two before you plan to go to Alaska. Don’t play it like us! We are really flexible people. If you are coming up on a cruise ship, know that the excursions will be booked quickly. Also if you are in the port when a ship is coming in, plan knowing that extra people will be there at the same time.
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Alaska is Expensive
As you think about planning your excursions, you have to think about what tours you can do on your own and which ones would be better with a tour company. First focus on what you want to do and not on what you should do! If you are anything like us, you are traveling on a budget and you don’t want to blow it!
Hiking can be a great way to go out and see the area, but do you know where the best places are to go? What about seeing wild life? Do you know where to find the best locations to see what you want to see? If you are traveling to Alaska to see wild life, then that is a reason to pay for a guide! Guides know all of the cool places to go.
Glaciers
Seeing glaciers is one reason people go to Alaska. There are some glaciers that you can hike to see and then others you have to take a tour to get to them.
Most people who come to Alaska want to go to Denali. Denali has its own weather system and this can be frustrating when you just want to see it. If you have to see Denali, we recommend that you see it from the air. There are several air charter companies. We recommend Talkeetna Air Taxi out of Talkeetna. They have incredible reviews and safety ratings. They take you to the mountain, in between the mountain ranges and to the glaciers. You are flying above the rivers and wildlife. We were not able to land on the glacier due the weather and they gave us a refund before we even landed.
We took a glacier boat excursion with LuLu Belle Amazing Glacier Tour. The tour was a full day. When they say all day, they mean all day. Plan on not looking at your watch and just enjoying the experience.
Fishing
Fishing is a big deal in Alaska. There are so many things to think about before you just go out fishing. What kind of gear do you need? How many fish can you catch? What length do they have to be? Where are the best places to fish? Oh and don’t forget to get that fishing license and bring your ID with you!
Just know that somedays will be great, while other days you’re not going to find anything. It is all about the experience even when you do not catch dinner. We had a great day of wins when we got to go fly fishing out in waist deep water on a day full of sunshine, even though we didn’t catch any fish. The excursion was with Kenai Cache Outfitters on the Kenai River, notoriously known for salmon fishing.
*Be sure to check the fishing season dates
We went halibut fishing with Alaska Gulf Coast Expeditions in Anchor Point. We launched our boat right from the shore. How incredible is that? We almost caught 30 pounds of fish that day! The freezer is full!
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Our Favorite Excursion
First we got to take a helicopter up to Punchbowl Glacier. That was so exciting, but that was only the beginning of this incredible experience. As we landed, we saw all of the dogs and they were so excited to see us coming. This is where many elite sled dog teams train during the summer months. It’s like summer camp for these dogs! The mushers stay with them with no access to water or cell service.
One of the best parts was witnessing the dogs eagerness to get hitched up. The experience included an hour long ride with our musher, followed by plenty of cuddle time with the adorable husky puppies.
We also learned more about the training for the world famous 1000 mile Iditarod Sled Dog Race. Did you know that the top dogs range from 3-6 years old and consume 10-12 thousand calories a day? This excursion is a must do if you plan a trip to Alaska during the summer months.
Breakdown Of The Cost For Alaskan Excursions
Talkeetna Air Taxi was $1105.80 for 2 people. They did give us a $356.40 refund for not being able to land on the glacier, so our total was $749.40.
A fishing license for one person is $15.00 for a one-day license.
Kenai Cache Outfitters was $476.55 in Coopers Landing, AK for 2 people.
Alaska Gulf Coast Expeditions in Anchor Point, AK was $742.00 for 2 people.
LuLu Belle Amazing Glacier Tour in Valdez, AK was $352.00 for 2 people.
Seavey’s IdidaRide Dog Sled Tours in Girdwood, AK was $1208.00 for 2 people.
*These fees are from the summer of 2023 and may not reflect current pricing.