Anchorage to Seward

[racnwdow]

Our cruise isn't until next September so we have plenty of time to plan.  Our flight should be in by 2:00 pm to Anchorage day before out cruise.  Cruise leaves the next evening from Seward, 8:00pm.  Wondering if we should stay in Anchorage for the night or go to Seward and spend the night there.  I have no burning urge to tour Anchorage.  Not sure if we should take the train or a bus to get to Seward.  Appreciate any input.  TIA

[AKJonesy]

You might not have a choice due to your arrival time.  You will miss the train and park connection bus.  You could get a transfer with PJs but do you really want to drive all that way on arrival after you have traveled on your flight/flights?  The benefit of driving yourself is stopping and seeing some of the wonderful sites along the way, but I'm just wondering how tired you might be after collecting luggage, eating etc and then getting on the road.  Also, you might call Thrifty and Budget to check on one way rental.  I tried and was not able to see any availability, so a call might be better.  Again, I emphasize arriving, arranging and then driving which seems a lot on a travel day.  Depending on your interests, there are things to do in Anchorage. I normally would not recommend Anchorage to visitors, but in your case, your window of opportunity isn't that great to do much else.  Others will probably chime in here.  

[Coral]

As a fellow Nebraskan (Lincoln) - I would probably recommend you stay in Anchorage that night. Enjoy a nice dinner and get a good night sleep. Then, catch the 6 am independent train to Seward and enjoy your afternoon in Seward and do a late disembarkment on to the ship.

 

I think it is too much to fly to Anchorage and then rent a car and drive to Seward in one day. I have had horrible flight issues this summer and things don't always go as planned.

 

Or, fly in 2 days early and spend one extra day in Seward.

[markeb]

I like @Coral's suggestions. If you can get there 2 days early, you'll be better rested. The train (which is absurdly early) is very nice, especially if you do the GoldStar service. Those are the glass enclosed cars, include breakfast and some drinks, and have wonderful observation platforms at the end of the cars. 

 

You'd have time in Anchorage to do a few things (we didn't on our last trip), rest, and have a great trip to Seward. You'd get into Seward around noon, and can explore Seward for the afternoon and into the next day before boarding your cruise. We actually had an amazing view of humpbacks from shore in Seward itself!

[AKJonesy]

IMHO getting a good night sleep in Anchorage isn't really possible.  Even in the best hotel...The Captain Cook, you can hear all of the street noise as the hotels are mostly on the busy streets of Anchorage.  Most people make the mistake of booking their AK flight the day before embarkation not arriving until afternoon or later and not realizing that the cruises require a long transfer.  This practically forces cruisers to stay in Anchorage overnight. 

[Coral]

3 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

IMHO getting a good night sleep in Anchorage isn't really possible.  Even in the best hotel...The Captain Cook, you can hear all of the street noise as the hotels are mostly on the busy streets of Anchorage.  Most people make the mistake of booking their AK flight the day before embarkation not arriving until afternoon or later and not realizing that the cruises require a long transfer.  This practically forces cruisers to stay in Anchorage overnight. 

I disagree. After flying for long periods of time which many of us having to do, I have often crashed in Anchorage and I am one that is sensitive to street noise (and stay in Captain Cook). It is exhausting for many of us to fly to Anchorage. 

 

I agree it is best to spend a few days (or longer) in Alaska to adjust to the time, to get over jet lag and most importantly, to see some off Alaska not by cruise ship.

[Travel-and-See]

If you want to take the train, you would need to stay in Anchorage and leave the next morning. Personally I always stay at a hotel within walking distance to the train station so I don't have to stress about missing a shuttle or getting a cab early in the morning. The train gets you into town with plenty of time to explore a little before boarding the ship if you'd like. 

 

I've stayed in Seward as well - there are not many hotel options but it's a lovely town and certainly has more charm than Anchorage.  I'm not sure how you would get there the day you land though unless you hired private transportation. 

[zqvol]

Stay in Anchorage and take the train the next morning. To be safe it’s going to be after 3 when you get your bags and get out of the airport. I would not want a 3 + hour bus ride after that. 

[matamanoa]

Many years ago we were taking an Alaskan cruise which left out of Seward and we arranged to arrive in Anchorage the day before the cruise.  We rented a car for the day and took a drive on Rte. 1, looking for wildlife and we drove as far as Turnagain Arm and admired the beautiful scenery.  Once back in Anchorage,  we went to the Performing Arts Centre where we saw a wonderful 40 minute film on the Aurora Borealis.  Then we went to the Museum of History and spent a couple of hours there.  The next morning we arrived at the train station early and got our seats which we had reserved.  We were able to have breakfast on the train in the dining car and we saw a moose on the way out of Anchorage.  The breakfast was substantial and delicious and once back in our seats we admired all the scenery passing before us.  We were glad that we had opted for the train as we could get up and move around to look out the windows and we had a different perspective than from a bus hugging the coastal highway.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Barb

[sr71_1]

What we did this past June is arrive in Anchorage 2 days ahead of the departure in Seward.  We used the extra time for some trips.   The morning after arrival we took the train to Talkeetna where we toured the town and then took a flight with K2 Aviation around Denali where we landed on a glacier.  The next morning we took the train to Seward and before boarding NCL we did a boat trip to Kenai fjords.