Whould this be possible for Independent travel

[dmc1025]

I keep going back and forth between doing a cruisetour and doint the land portion independly. If I was going to do it on my own can someone tell me if I could get to these places in with having 6 days to travel. Also besides the places listed I would be interested in seeing any place not listed that would be good for wildlife viewing.

 

Denali 2 days

Seward

Kenai fjords

Princes William Sound

Kodiak

[AkSusan]

I keep going back and forth between doing a cruisetour and doint the land portion independly. If I was going to do it on my own can someone tell me if I could get to these places in with having 6 days to travel. Also besides the places listed I would be interested in seeing any place not listed that would be good for wildlife viewing.

 

Denali 2 days

Seward

Kenai fjords

Princes William Sound

Kodiak

I'd say the first 4 are doable but to add Kodiak in there I'd say no. Kodiak is quite expensive to get to (and then you hope the weather and wind cooperates so you can get in) and just can't see spending all that money to just go there for a day.

 

Susan in Anchorage :)

[greatam]

I keep going back and forth between doing a cruisetour and doint the land portion independly. If I was going to do it on my own can someone tell me if I could get to these places in with having 6 days to travel. Also besides the places listed I would be interested in seeing any place not listed that would be good for wildlife viewing.

 

Denali 2 days

Seward

Kenai fjords

Princes William Sound

Kodiak

 

First, you definitely will NOT get to both Prince William Sound (Whittier) and Seward (Kenai Fjords) on a cruise tour. And it is highly doubtful there is a cruise tour of 6 days which includes all you want to see.

 

You can get to Denali, Seward (for Kenai Fjords) and Prince William Sound (Whittier) in 6 days on your own. Where does your ship leave from???

 

You will be hard pressed to get to Kodiak in the time alotted. Only two ways to get to Kodiak-fly from ANC or other places-scheduled service on Alaska Airlines/ERA about 6 times per day-about $600.00pp RT. Or a charter.

 

OR the ferry from Homer-10 hours EACH Way-about $150.00pp RT (not in a cabin-just deck space). And you have to get to Homer (5 hours from ANC). Otherwise, you have to take 2 ferries from Whittier and it takes almost 3 days 1 way.

 

Why do you want to go to Kodiak???? If it is to see large brown bears, there are FAR better places to do it. You really need a 2-3 day trip in Kodiak to be able to see many bears. They are fairly well hidden and difficult to see on Kodiak. And you MUST time your trip to be able to see A LOT of bears. Late August/early September is the best time to see a lot of bears (other than July in Brooks).

[ysr_racer]

I agree, Kodiak is a no.

 

Here's my land tour.

 

http://www.ysr-racer.com/alaska_2008.htm

[SEPyle]

As others have said; decide if Kodiak is a must do. It's all about choices.

 

We did a 10 night pre-cruise before our Southbound cruise. We love Hoonah, which is a destination you don't get to by chance unless you're on a cruise that spends a day there. This time Hoonah/Icy Strait Point was not a choice since we wanted to go to Glacier Bay; College Fjord; and Haines and booked HAL's Volendam which included the above but not Icy Strait Point. We therefore made the decision to begin our Alaska adventure to include 3 nights in our favorite place in Alaska...Hoonah!

 

I didn't ask anyone's advice about our choice. The reason was simple. We contemplated our interests/our priorities/our budget. OK, maybe the overall budget we didn't contemplate quite enough because Alaska is even more expensive then our previous trips. Am I sorry? No way. We had the most amazing time in Hoonah. We wouldn't have wanted to change it for anything! So for us it was right.

 

So as greatam mentioned...decide why you want to include Kodiak. If after weighing the options; if you still want to include it, then for you it's right!

 

Hope this helps!

[SEPyle]

I agree, Kodiak is a no.

 

Here's my land tour.

 

http://www.ysr-racer.com/alaska_2008.htm

 

ysr_racer, I loved your descriptions of your land tour. We stayed in Soldotna (at Stillwaters Chalets-a great new option, but not really a B&B); and had dinner at St. Elias Brewing Company which isa really good place to eat. The best part: By Alaska standards, the prices aren't bad and the beer really good!

 

We actually did a fishing excursion too on the Kenai. I'm not a fishing type person; but we had a great time! My husband landed a 60-65 pound King Salmon, but it was a couple weeks past the season so he had to let it go...or better put: catch and release by regulation!

[dmc1025]

Kodiak isn't a must do. Just thought I might want to see it if it worked into our plans. What place would be better for viewing bears that might fit into our plans?

[mytime53]

What place would be better for viewing bears that might fit into our plans?

That depends a lot on when you'll be here.

[dmc1025]

I haven't booked my trip yet. Looking into June or Aug and want to see the most wildlife I can.

[Budget Queen]

Kodiak isn't a must do. Just thought I might want to see it if it worked into our plans. What place would be better for viewing bears that might fit into our plans?

 

Denali Park is one of the best "bargain areas" for bear opportunities.

 

And actually 6 days isn't a lot of time without Kodiak if that time also includes your travel time?? If bears are a priority, I would be in Denali Park with 3 over nights and 2 shuttle bus trips in to at least Eielson.