What's Special About Alaska Cruise Tours?

A friend of mine  returned from an Alaska cruise tour last week and hasn’t stopped talking about it!   Majestic, Breathtaking, Grand…those are just a few of the words she used from an endless list of similar adjectives. Is a cruise tour better than just an Alaskan cruise? It’s not a fair comparison.  Everything about the cruise portion is also Majestic, Breathtaking, Grand!  The cruise tour just takes the experience up a couple of notches!

Here’s some things you can experience on a cruise tour that you can’t if you opt for just the cruise portion.

The Alaskan Railroad: Riding the Alaskan rails is an experience that’s impossible to duplicate. Glaciers, mountains, and wildlife fill the ever-changing panorama of your window. On a clear day, the views of Mt. Denali from the train are amazing! Dall sheep can often be seen on the rocky cliffs. And near Talkeetna the train crosses over the 918-foot Hurricane Gulch trestle, towering 296 feet above the creek. Scary! The entire ride is a huge, breathtaking, photo opportunities!!! 

Denali National Park: This national park is in interior Alaska, centered on North America’s tallest mountain, Denali, formerly known as Mount McKinley. You must do a land tour to visit this incredible park. No shore excursions go to Denali.  There are so many options to explore Denali. Watch for the mountain, grizzlies, moose and more on a bus tour of the famed Park Road, tour an Iditarod champion’s sled dog kennel, or take in the views from a flight-seeing tour! Hike, raft, climb...there's so much to do!

Northern Lights: While you can potentially see them all over Alaska, the most reliable spot to view the Northern Lights is Fairbanks.  Fairbanks is geographically under the "aurora oval," where auroras are seen most frequently. Peak viewing season is in the dead of winter however, there are opportunities to see the northern lights during the cruising season in May or early September.  Don’t miss out on the opportunity to experience this rare and mystical event.

Now I can go on and on but I think you get the picture.  Exploring Alaska by adding a cruise tour can take an amazing cruise vacation and turn it into a a once in a lifetime experience!