Your Expert Alaska Travel Advisor

Glacier Alaska

Hi! My name is Adam Wyler. I am your expert Alaska travel advisor. Alaska's nickname is 'The Last Frontier' and that makes perfect sense since they were the last state admitted to the USA in North America. Alaska was admitted to the union on January 3, 1959. Alaska has 8 national parks, 2nd most in the US to California. However, Alaska has 54 million square miles of national parks. This is 2/3 of all the national parks in the US! Obviously, if you are a national park buff, Alaska is the place to be! The largest of the Alaska national parks is Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve and is 8 times the size of California's Yellowstone National Park. The park is located in South Central Alaska near the Canadian border. It has 3 different mountain ranges within its borders. The park is also known for its massive glaciers. The next largest national park is Gates of the Arctic in North Central Alaska located entirely within the Arctic Circle. It's 8.4 million acres is more than all of California's national park acreage combined. You cannot drive into the park as there are no roads or trails. The only way in is to either fly or arrive by boat. The other national parks in Alaska are Glacier Bay, Katmai, Kenai Fjords, Kobuk Valley, Lake Clark, and Denali. We will discuss more about Denali later. There are 3 ways to get to Alaska from the mainland. You can head ti the US West coast and hop on a cruise ship that sails up to Alaska. You can fly into Anchorage to either take a day trip by tour bus to Denali or you can book the Denali Star Train, a 24-hour train ride straight to Denali National Park to return the next day. Or, for nature and cost-minded enthusiasts, you can take the Alaska Ferry System from Seattle up to Alaska. The ferry system actually takes you out to the Aleutian Islands if you want. That's a 2 week adventure! There are many cruise lines that sail to Alaska from the West coast. All of them require at least a 7-day itinerary. Most are 10-days or longer. Princess Cruise Lines carries the largest percentage of inner passage sailing licenses. Why is this important? Inside passage sailing enable you to see more sea life and land animals. Please keep this in mind. Also, some of your river cruise lines offer inside passage sailings, but remember these are smaller ships with fewer ammenities and are a higher price point. In cities like Anchorage and Fairbanks, there are plenty of cultural experience learning about indigenous people such as the Innuit and Eskimos. With all the offering available, Alaska is a nature lover's paradise! I hope you contact me about your next Alaska adventure!