Alaska advice?

KplusA

My fiance and I have decided to go to Alaska for our honeymoon!  Does anyone have any advice?  Where did you go, how long did you stay there, was it really expensive, etc?  We are currently planning on flying into Anchorage, driving to Seward, spending a few days in a cabin near the Kenai Peninsula, and then driving up to Denali National Park for a few more days.    Our honeymoon is still over a year away, so we're definitely still open to any suggestions!  Thanks ladies!

Cinderella30

I have to agree with CMgr.  There are some places that are better experienced via a cruise and Alaska is one of them.  About 6 yrs ago we went on Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas (I believe that's the name) and had a great time.  Alaska is expensive but we found the trip manageable via a cruise.  Besides, we had the best seat in the house when it passed by Hubbard glacier.  We just sat in our balcony, with hot chocolate, and just stared at the wonderful scenery.

RunsWithBears

Wahoo!  Alaska!  It really depends on what you want to do to determine if a cruise is right for you.  My FI and I are huge outdoor people and wanted to spend our time hiking, backpacking, mountaineering, and getting away from people so a cruise was definitely not for us. If you do go by car get this: http://milepost.com/ (the catalog/road map).  It was the single, most helpful thing we had on our trip.  Seriously, don't go without it - "towns" are few and far between and it would suck to run out of gas in the middle of nowhere.  Snacks are also a good thing to always have in the car.

Alaska is more expensive (from gas to food to hotels) so you'll need to budget accordingly.  Even meals in small towns were $15-$20 a person.

We were there for about 19 days spent time in Anchorage, Haines, and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and drove everywhere (easiest 16 hour drives of my life!).  I'm not sure how adventurous you are, but there are guiding companies all over the state that do 1-5 day rock climbing, mountaineering, and sea kayaking trips.  If you end up by the ocean, definitely do some sea kayaking.  It's fun, beautiful, and you'll most likely get to see some cool wildlife.  If you can make it, go to Glacier Bay.  We didn't kayak there, but our guide said it was magical.  I also recommend doing a dog sledding tour - the puppies are adorable and it's interesting.  But mostly the puppies are adorable.

When are you going?

sassnspark

I absolutely loved my time in Alaska and think that more people need to see this beautiful part of our country.  I went a few years ago in late July with my best friend.  We don't know if either one of us will ever get back there so we wanted to take advantage of our time there.  We took a one way cruise out of Vancouver and made sure part of the itinerary included Glacier Bay---I mean, when are you going to see glaciers up close and personal like that?---after that we rented a car and drove to the Kenai peninsula for a few days, where we went fly fishing (really cool for a virigin fisherwoman!) and then drove to Denali for four days, which is totally worth experiencing in my opinion and worth the price in scenery alone.  Alaska IS expensive, but if you are willing to put time into research and planning then I think you would have a wonderful time.  Good luck

[Deleted User]

We booked our honeymoon for Alaska, also as a cruise.  Really seems like a great value for the money.  But cruises aren't for everyone.  Try Alaska for Dummies, and other such books, it's a good start!