RAAN03 Alaska's Treasures by Rail – Alaska Railroad Trip

RAAN03 Alaska's Treasures by Rail – Alaska Railroad Trip

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If  there  is  a  super  simple  way  to  combine  the  great  beauty  of  Denali  and  Kenai  Fjords National  Parks  in  one  single  rail  trip,  then  this tour is  it!  You  start  in  Anchorage,  which  is  filled  with  lot  of  adventures  along  with  metropolitan  amenities.  With  thousands  of  moose,  very  many  national  parks  nearby  and  60  glaciers  in  a  quick  drive  away,  it's  one  of  the  best  places  to  start  your  vacation. Experience Alaska's most spectacular train route on board the Coastal Classic Train to Seward on the Kenai Peninsula. Relax on the train and see glaciers, snow-capped peaks, lakes and wildlife. Seward  is  situated  at  the  head  of  Resurrection  Bay  on  the  Kenai  Peninsula  and  it  is  one  of  Alaska’s  oldest  and  most  scenic  communities.  Trophy  sport  fishing,  glacier  and  wildlife  cruises,  sailing,  hiking,  kayaking,  flightseeing,  summer  dog  sled  rides  and  lots  more  is  possible  to  do  from  Seward.  But  the  major  attraction  is  the  Kenai  Fjords  Wildlife  &  Glacier  Cruise,  which  on  a  clear  day  will  be  a  trip  that  you  would  remember  forever!  Denali  National  Park  nestling  in  the  shadows  of  towering  20.320  ft.  Mt.  Denali  will  be  your  next  stop.  Denali  National  Park  mesmerizes  every  one  with  its  pristine  beauty  amazing  hikes  and  great  wildlife  spotting. Please  read  our  itinerary  to  have  more  detailed  day-to-day  experience.  On  request,  this  trip  can  be  customized  and  can  be  organized  in  reverse  order. 

  • Itinerary

  • Prices & Dates

  • Attractions & Add-ons

  • Accommodation

  • Map

  • Information

  • Reviews

Anchorage ( Overnight: Anchorage )

Arrive in Anchorage during the day. Transfer to your hotel in downtown Anchorage. Nestled along the Chugach Mountains, the coastal city of Anchorage is not the frozen tundra of Alaska you might imagine. You will find it’s brimming with activities for the outdoorsy and adventurous. Being the largest city in Alaska, it is rich in indigenous culture; spend your day enjoying the Alaska Native Heritage Center, visiting the Anchorage Museum, or browsing through the Saturday Market. Visit the Lake Hood Floatplane base, go for a walk along the Coastal Train and try out one of Anchorage popular seafood restaurants. With so much of variety of things, for a first time visitor to Alaska or a seasoned traveller, Anchorage has more to offer and is the perfect starting point for your journey into Alaska.

Anchorage – Seward ( Overnight: Seward )

Board the Alaska Railroad early morning for your departure to Seward. The train ride offers incomparable vista of fjords, glaciers and mountains as you follow the Cook Inlet/Turnagain Arm. Arrive in Seward at 11 am. You will be greeted by the tour guide for your Seward area Sightseeing Tour. Heading out to Exit Glacier, take a short walk to the face of the glacial ice. Watch for mountain goats, moose or bear on the mountainside. During the salmon runs, see salmon swimming upstream to spawn. A hearty lunch will be served at nearby Resurrection Roadhouse before you travel to the Seavey homestead and experience "IditaRide" 1.5 hour Wilderness Dog Sled Ride and Tour. In the evening enjoy a seafood dinner at the boat harbor. Included: Seward Area Sightseeing Tour

Seward - Anchorage ( Overnight: Anchorage )

This morning board the stable catamaran for a spectacular cruise deep into Kenai Fjords National Park with actively "calving" glaciers and magnificent scenery. Covering 110-miles, the trip is narrated by a National Park Ranger, who is highly adept at spotting wildlife and pointing out the many sights. Kenai Fjords showcase the best of Alaska’s marine world in a compact package. Sea otters float belly-up eating mussels while Harbor seals haul out on icebergs. Look out for Steller sea lions on Chiswell Island as well as Humpback and killer whales. After reaching the tidewater glacier, guests witness "glacier calving" a process by which glaciers shed giant slabs of ancient ice. Board the Alaska Railroad this evening for a scenic train ride north to Anchorage. Included: Kenai Fjords Glacier & Wildlife Cruise

Anchorage - Denali National Park (Overnight: Denali Village )

Morning transfer to the railroad station where you'll board the train to Denali National Park. Choose between the standard rail car or the glass-dome compartments with large panorama windows ensuring unobstructed views of snowcapped mountain ranges, pristine scenery and abundant wildlife. Enjoy the comfortable ride as the train takes you via the Matanuska Valley towards the Alaska Range and Mt. Denali. Onboard services feature a restaurant, gift shop and snack bar. Arrive at Denali Village late afternoon. Transfer to your hotel and check into your room. Once you settled take a stroll through Denali Village, join a flightseeing tour, wildwater rafting trip or visit Jeff King’s Husky Homestead Kennel for a personal tour with four-time Iditarod champion Jeff King and his sled dogs.

Denali National Park ( Overnight: Denali Village )

Denali National Park offers excellent wildlife viewing and spectacular sceneries. Pick up your tickets, board the bus and watch out for grizzly bears, moose, caribou, wolf and fox moving along the ridges and river beds. Your driver informs about the history of Denali National Park, its diverse wildlife and flora. Once an animal has been spotted the bus will stop that everyone can watch and take pictures. The bus turns around at Eielson Visitor Center - 66 miles one way/8 hours round trip. You can get off the bus anytime to go for a hike. Return to the Denali Park entrance anytime during the day. Optional: We can extend the transit bus tour to Wonder Lake or exchange to the Tundra Wilderness Tour, Kantishna Wilderness Trails or Backcountry Lodge Tour. Included: Denali Transit Bus to Eielson Center

Denali National Park – Anchorage

Board the Alaska Railroad and relax in your comfortable reclining seats, have a delicious lunch onboard or listen to the commentaries from an onboard interpreter. Just south of Denali National Park you will be passing the small community of Cantwell and then enter Broad Pass, offering majestic views of the Alaska Range in all directions. Your rail tour continues via Wasilla - home of the Alaska Iditarod Sled Dog Race - and crosses the Knik River with the Chugach Mountains as a backdrop before arriving in Anchorage. The tour ends with the arrival at the Anchorage Train Station. Please contact us for an additional overnight in Anchorage or extending the tour.

Rates in US $ / per Person
Comfort Hotel Category Single Double Triple Quad Child
May 18 - May 31 $2836 $1937 $1669 $1532 $573
June 1 - August 31 $2920 $2021 $1753 $1616 $785
September 1 - September 13 $2836 $1937 $1669 $1532 $573
First Class Hotel Category Single Double Triple Quad Child
May 18 - May 31 $3727 $2628 $2312 $2154 $876
June 1 - August 31 $3966 $2830 $2501 $2337 $939
September 1 - September 13 $3727 $2628 $2312 $2154 $876

What’s included

5 Nights Comfort OR First-Class Accommodation

Hotel and State Taxes

Seward Area Sightseeing Tour & Sled Dog Ride

Kenai Fjords Glacier & Wildlife Cruise including Lunch

Seward Harbor Tax

Denali Transit Bus Ticket to Eielson Visitor Center

Seward and Denali Railroad Station Transfers

Tour Documentation

Sightseeing Information

Railroad Transportation Anchorage – Seward

Railroad Transportation Seward - Anchorage

Railroad Transportation Anchorage - Denali National Park

Railroad Transportation Denali National Park – Anchorage

Comfort Hotel Category includes Reserved Seats in Standard Adventure Class Train
( upgrade to Dome Car Train is available for $560.00 per person)

First Class Hotel Category includes Reserved Seats in Upper Level Panorama Dome Car Train,
Priority Check-in & Boarding, Use of Private Outdoor Viewing Platform,
Priority Dining Room Seating, Enhanced Reclining Seats

Tour Departures

Daily  from  May  18th  –  September  13th

Seward: Extend Kenai Fjords Cruise to Northwestern Fjords Cruise

The premium 8 1/2 hrs Kenai Fjords Cruise covers magnificent Northwestern Fjord - the home to three amazing tidewater glacier, hanging alpine glacier, abundant wildlife such as Orca Whales, Steller Sea Lions, playful Sea Otters, Bald Eagles, Puffins and of course the magnificent scenery. On this tour we travel futher into Kenai Fjords National Park than most other daily cruise tour operators. In addition we visit the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge and Chiswell Island's seabird rookeries within Resurrection Bay. Make sure you bring your camera to photograph the abundant marine and coastal wildlife, many types of sea birds and the untouched beauty of Alaska's shorelines. Tour includes a light breakfast and hot lunch. Total 150 miles round trip.

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Seward: Extend Kenai Fjords Cruise and include a dinner on Fox Island

Spend your day aboard the most popular wildlife and glacier cruise in Alaska. Explore the wildlife and glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park. Then, dock at the magical Fox Island for an all-you-can-eat prime rib and Alaska salmon buffet. What a day!

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Denali: Exchange Transit Bus Tour to Denali Tundra Wilderness Tour

The fully narrated 62-mile Tundra Wilderness Tour into Denali National Park is led by a certified naturalist driver/guide who will also provide historical and geographical background of the area. The tour will last approximately eight to nine hours and includes ample photo and rest stops. When your tour driver is able, he/she will take video footage of animals along Park Road and project these images onto drop-down video screens, featured only our specially designed tour buses. This way you can get a close-up look at the roadside action. At the end of the tour, you’ll have the opportunity to purchase a “Tundra Wilderness Tour” DVD, which will feature some of the video footage shot from your tour! Guests cannot switch buses throughout the day (only the Denali Transit Bus allows this).

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Denali: Exchange Transit Bus Tour to Kantishna Wilderness Trails Tour

The Kantishna Wilderness Trails tour is the premier Denali Park wilderness bus excursion. Spend the entire day in Denali National Park and discover a piece of Alaska's gold rush history and warm hospitality at the historic Kantishna Roadhouse, located just past Wonder Lake on the banks of Moose Creek. Your 12 to 13-hour fully-narrated excursion to Kantishna travels via a custom motorcoach through 95 miles of Denali National Park's prime wildlife habitat. The last 30 miles allow for full viewing of Mt. Denali, weather permitting. The wilderness backcountry of Denali Park provides diverse habitats which support big-game species such as black bear, grizzly, moose, caribou, Dall sheep, wolf, and wolverine. Hot beverages and refreshments are included en route to the Kantishna Roadhouse. After a hearty deli style lunch in the dining room at the Roadhouse, relax and visit the Historical Recorder's Cabin and enjoy a dog sled demonstration or gold panning. Guests cannot switch buses throughout the day (only the Denali Transit Bus allows this).

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Denali: Exchange Transit Bus Tour to Denali Backcountry Adventure Bus Tour

The Denali Backcountry Adventure Tour is another premier Denali Park Wildlife bus excursion. This full-day, 13-hour tour travels 95 miles in each direction to the Denali Backcountry Lodge in Kantishna. You'll travel by private bus with a trained naturalist driver/guide giving interpretation along the way helping you search for bear, moose, caribou and other wildlife while pointing out the biology and geology of the region. Several photo and rest stops will be made. Snacks, drinks and lunch are provided. Lunch is served at the exclusive Denali Backcountry Lodge in Kantishna. Lunch consists of a sandwich bar, soups, fruits, snacks, fresh baked goods and non-alcoholic drinks. After lunch try your luck at gold panning near the lodge or take a guided nature walk before returning to the Park entrance.

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Anchorage: Bear Viewing Tour Day Trip to Brooks Falls / Katmai National Park

Take off from Anchorage to an all day bear viewing expedition past glaciers and volcanoes - within the land of the giant animals: the brown bear country of southwest Alaska. You'll fly to Katmai's - worlds famous Brooks River Falls where brown bears feed on salmon. Each year millions of sockeye salmons burst from the Bering Sea into lakes and streams of the Katmai National Park. These fish provide the primary food source for the worlds largest population of brown bears. As many as 50 bears may be viewed up-close-and-personal from elevated boardwalks and viewing platforms fishing along the 1 1/2 mile Brooks River during peak season (July). Local National Park Rangers are answering all of your questions about this incredible park during the self guided full day tour. Lunch is included at Brooks Lodge.

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Jessie, NY: We have had a great vacation, Alaska is just beautiful. Taking the train from Anchorage to Seward was one of the favorite parts of the trip. There were amazing views and the seats were comfortable. The cafe had good options for breakfast and snacks. The Seward Sightseeing Tour was a once in a life time experience for someone who is from the East coast. First, you had an introduction to the Iditarod race. Then you walked back to the kennels and were introduced to the dogs. We were a small group of 5 so we loaded up on a sled and mushed away. All of the guides were great. They talked about the dogs and how they are cared for and prep for racing. After our ride through the woods, we came back and got to play with the puppies, some newborns and some a few weeks old. After play time, we went into the class room and were shown sleds, trophys and one dog was dressed up to be out in the tundra (even though he was not happy about doing it).