Q: We’re planning a 2011 trip to Alaska. We want to see glaciers and spend a couple days in Denali and are thinking about booking a package that combines a cruise and a tour, so that we would only need to get our airfare separately. Any suggestions? —Paula

A: There are lots of ways to combine a cruise with a Denali land tour. First, you’ll need to choose a cruise that crosses the Gulf of Alaska and disembarks in one of the Anchorage ports, Seward or Whittier. (Inside Passage cruises, which sail round-trip from Seattle or Vancouver, don’t get near Denali.)

Choose Your Style of Denali Tour Read more »

Q: In about 3 weeks, three of my friends and I will be flying in from Canada to do a non-guided river tour on the Killik River. I am feeling anxious that this could be a very difficult trip. I wanted to know your opinion on that particular river: Are we crazy to do this trip without a guide? We have done backcountry backpacking, but I personally have not done a trip with the raft, so any tips would be wonderful. Thanks —Carolyn

A: Good news, Carolyn. The Killik—located on the North Slope of the central Brooks Range—is pretty tame. It never gets more than Class I or Class II water, so the rafting will not be that difficult. If you want to get details on what each whitewater class entails, read our breakdown of different Alaska whitewater classes on Alaska.org.

As for doing a trip without a guide, I can’t assess your skills. Some people would say it’s not wise to do a wilderness float like this without a guide. But my first trip to Alaska was an unguided ascent of Mt. McKinley, and they certainly would have said the same thing about that.

So I think if you have some outdoor experience and are carrying some means of protection against bears, I think you’ll be fine. Since this is a river trip, I don’t see you having any route-finding problems. Just make sure you have the following: Read more »

Q: Could you recommend some package tour companies where I could fly into Anchorage this summer and go see Denali for 5 days or so? Camping would be fine with me and I could bring my own sleeping bag. I’d like to do some hikes and maybe some river rafting. — Gary

A: Gary, if you're willing to camp, you can save a ton of money on your vacation. Lodging is typically the single biggest expense for an Alaska trip. By camping, you largely eliminate it.

Denali is great for both hiking and rafting, but of course there are other areas that are great for that, too, such as the Kenai Peninsula. (Check out this list of Alaska campgrounds).

That said, if you want to complete your trip in 5 days, and you want to see Denali, my vote is that you spend all your time in Denali—that way, you don't waste a lot of time driving to other places. Some tips: Read more »

Q: Six of us are going to the Seward area to do some charter fishing, but we'd also like to do some bank fishing. Would you recommend a good place to do some bank fishing for halibut? It would be good if we could catch 2 halibuts every day (LOL). —Jesse

A: Great question. We asked Steve Zernia, owner of ProFish-n-Sea, a charter company in Seward, for his advice and he had some bad news: Bank fishing for halibut is a pretty difficult proposition. "Halibut occasionally venture into very shallow water in these areas—I’ve heard of them being caught from a kayak," he told us. “But honestly, the success rate from shore will be very low.” His advice: Read more »

I was playing in the pool with my kids at the Holiday Inn Express in Seward last night after dinner. A nice couple came in, and we started to talk.

They told us all about their vacation. Naturally, I asked, "How did you plan your trip?" They said, "Alaska has this great website...we found our hotels and tours on it. Today, we drove from Anchorage to Seward and stopped at the places it recommended. It was right on."

We all know what my next question will be. And at this point, I'm either going to be really happy--or really distraught--with their answer. Somewhat sheepishly and anxiously, I asked,"Do you remember what website it was?" And they said..."Alaska.org!" Read more »

Q: Is it wise to hike without a guide in Alaska? We have hiked a lot as a family and want to hike Reed Lake Trail in Palmer. But since this is the wilderness, with brown bears, etc., I don't know how wise this is. If not, whom from the area do you recommend to take us out? —Janet

A: Janet, I wouldn’t worry in the least about doing this hike without a guide—plus, there are only a few places in Alaska where you can do guided hikes.

Indeed, the possibility of bears is what differentiates the Alaska wilderness from others—it changes the experience. But the reality is, the chances of a bear encounter are very slim. Bears are actually pretty shy, and will stay away from people unless they feel threatened. Read more »

Q: We’re planning our second trip to Alaska and we want to visit Juneau, Haines, Sitka, Ketchikan and other ports. We plan on using the Marine Highway ferry and want to miss all the crowds. What days are the cruise days? —Duane

A: Great question. The ferry is an excellent way to travel Alaska—it’s laid back, and stops at both major ports and lesser-known ports that are great for exploring. (This is a popular way for Alaskan locals to do their own vacations.) If you want to dodge the huge influxes of cruise passengers at the major ports, check out this link to the Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska web site that shows the docking calendar for each Alaska port. For more info on the ferry, check out our Alaska Marine Highway page on Alaska.org. Read more »

My 3-year old daughter, Alana, and I went on a Daddy-daughter adventure this weekend.  We drove to Portage Lake then skiied from the Visitor's Center over to the face of Portage Glacier. (Actually, I skiied--Alana rode in the chariot.)  It took less than 30 minutes to get the few miles to the glacier.  I have to believe this is one of the most impressive glaciers either Big or Little Minnie Mouse has seen.

As we were returning, we saw two skiiers with large backpacks against the enormous backdrop of the surrounding mountains. I desaturated the blues in the image to give it the feel of an old Washburn black and white photo.

Read more »

Q: I am planning a driving trip to Alaska and want to know if I can drive to Nome in any combination of roads or ferry. I plan on visiting the Anchorage and Fairbanks areas, too. —Bob

A: I’ve got a little bad news: you cannot drive to Nome! There are no roads leading there, and no ferry service. The only way there is using an Alaska Airlines jet. The good news is that it's not that expensive from Anchorage if you take the Alaska Airlines Nome day or overnight tour (with prices ranging from $499 to $599—a good deal, since the roundtrip flights alone can cost $442).

You might find it fun, however, to spend more time in Nome, in which case you can book your own flights, stay at either stay at either the Aurora Inn or the Nome Nugget Inn. Nome has its big moment every March as the finish line of the Iditarod, but here’s what you can do there other times of year: Read more »