Anchorage to Whittier or Seward by rail or road.

We are travelling to Vancouver in May for one month.

While in Canada we have booked to fly up to 脜nchorage for 12 days.

I have worked out most of this part of our holiday but not too sure about our 4 nights in Anchorage.

We have already booked a day cruise from Anchorage on 26 Glacier Cruises for our first full day.

Can you advise the most scenic way to get to Whittier where this cruise departs from. Should we take the coach or rail option.

Do you miss much taking the rail trip from Anchorage to Whittier and not from Anchorage to Seward. Whats the difference between the two.

We were planning on doing that trip another day but now are thinking of heading north instead of having three south trips. Need help here please. Two full free days in Anchorage not sure about.

We were also planning hiring a car and for one day heading south towards Girdwood or Portage Glacier at a more leisurely pace and stopping at some of the sites on the way and next day heading north.

That would leave us with the details as below.

Day 1 - Arrive Anchorage mid day. Spend rest of day looking around Anchorage.

Day 2 - Go on 26 Glacier Cruise to Prince William Sound. Not sure where to take their rail or coach option from Anchorage. We did book the coach option but now having second thoughts. This is basically a half day trip so we would spend the rest of the day around Anchorage again.

Day 3 - Hire car and head south for the day aiming at Girdwood and Portage Glacier area.

Day 4 - Head north by hire care for the day aiming at Talkeetna. Maybe a fly trip from over Mt McKinnley from here. (suggestions here appreciated please).

Day 5 to Day 12- Fly from Anchorage to Junea for two nights and then Alaskan Marine Highway to Haines for 4 nights and then one night in Skagway and next day onto Whitehorse by White Pass Rail before flying back to Vancouver. (This part of holiday pretty much OK about.)

Anchorage to Whittier or Seward by rail or road.

I would have suggested taking the train to Seward for overnight and doing a wildlife cruise, Sealife Center, Exit Glacier etc if you hadn%26#39;t already booked for Whittier. Being the case.. you can drive to Whittier yourself for the glacier cruise and do Portage Glacier, Big Game Conservation Center, tram at Aleyska, gold panning, etc on that same day. The train and road run parallel this stretch. They go through seperate mnt passes at Portage, the turn off for Whittier, for the rest of the trip to Seward. The train is very scenic and relaxing.

Anchorage to Whittier or Seward by rail or road.

Hi, personally, I would rent a car the first day, see a couple of things in Anchorage and then drive to Girdwood and stay overnight there - it%26#39;s about 40 minutes driving time from Anchorage but you will want to stop probably several times as it is listed as one of the top 10 scenic drives in the world. From Girdwood the next morning it%26#39;s a short hop to the tunnel and on to Whittier. Then when you leave Whittier, you can stop at Portage Glacier (assuming you aren%26#39;t tired of glaciers - frankly, they are all a big bunch of ice and you can%26#39;t see the glacier at Portage anymore without taking the boat out across the lake) and/or the Wildlife Park near there. Then you can head to Seward by car. Day three would be in Seward then you can stay there overnight and head back to Anchorage the next day or head back north that evening - see a bit more of Anchorage (remember we have day light until 7PM already and by the time you are here, it will be light until 10PM at least). You could head out to Talkeetna the next morning (allow 3 hours with stops, etc.)

You may want to re-think the full week for the southeast portion of the trip. As I read your itinerary, you are planning on 4 nights in Haines and it%26#39;s unlikely you%26#39;ll find enough in Haines to warrant more than the afternoon of the day your ferry up to Haines and overnight. You might want 2 nights in Skagway. Two nights in Juneau is enough. You%26#39;ll want at least a full day in Whitehorse - there%26#39;s quite a lot to see there. You could use what time you could save on that end to spend a bit more time in Southcentral as you haven%26#39;t enough time in this region to do it justice.

Just some thoughts - have a great trip!