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Top 3 Alaska Adventures For Your Trip
Plan your trip with our off-road reports. You’ll find articles about everything from the best trail food to activities in Alaska that are worthy of the 49th State.
Look no further for our top three Alaskan adventures! These excursions are likely to be on your bucket list as you plan to visit the 49th State. There’s nothing more Alaskan than seeing a glacier, getting a view of Denali, or spotting bears! We love an adventure that gets you off the highway and into the wilderness.
Visit Alaska in the Summer For Your Next Adventure
Alaska in the summertime is just gorgeous. It’s easy to see why most people visit during the summer. From mid May through August, the days grow long under the Midnight Sun and the temperatures typically reach a comfortable 70 degrees. Be prepared for any weather Alaska may have from bright sunny days to some rain!
Alaska really comes alive in the summer with incredible views and lots of daylight to pack your trip with memorable adventures. Summer means more chances to see wildlife (including pesky mosquitoes) and it’s a great time to try some fresh caught seafood.
Whether you are taking day trips from Anchorage or going on a road trip, you are going to leave with lots of stories to tell from that time you saw a moose on the median or those surprise roadside views. Rent a car, grab some snacks, and follow the highway as it threads you between mountain ranges, along tidal flats, and through river valleys.
How Long Should We Visit Alaska For?
Alaska is best explored on a 10-14 day road trip. This allows you to head both North and South of Anchorage to explore Denali and Kenai Fjords National Parks, or go for a more remote adventure into the wilderness.
A 5-7 day trip is great for prioritizing one big area of interest, unless you really want to see it all and are good with spending some time in the car. Luckily the drive is always so beautiful!
Pro tip – you can view Denali from Talkeetna and stop along the way for a UTV ride with us, and have time to go and explore a coastal town too!
Just have a long weekend? Rent a car and make the most of it! You can do so much in three days. Just get your car snacks and playlists ready so you can hit the highway and go explore. Check out our recommendations for spending a weekend in Anchorage!
Top 3 Adventures For Your Trip to Alaska
1. Flightsee Over Denali National Park
Seeing Denali is a bucket list endeavor for many. Go fly around the Alaska Range and have a chance to see the Great One to make your adventure an unforgettable experience! Fly with K2 Aviation to try your luck at catching a glimpse of Denali through the plane window.
Head up to Talkeetna, just 2 hours North of Anchorage, to check in for your flight. Talkeetna is a cute, quirky town with lots of history and shops to stop in. Before or after your flight, be sure to walk the downtown and lookout for the Mayor who is a cat!
You’ll fly through the jaw dropping Alaska Range for views that you just can’t find anywhere else in Alaska. Enjoy your own window seat and press your lens right up against the glass to capture the sweeping ridgelines and glaciers flowing from jagged, granite peaks. Peer down into crevasses for that iconic glacier blue hue. You don’t get views like this from the highway!
Add in a glacier landing to your flight for even more adventure. The planes are equipped with skis to help them land on one of the many glaciers in the Alaska Range. Step out onto the snow and stare up at incredible mountain views as you watch other planes fly overhead.
2. Go On a Boat Tour in Kenai Fjords National Park
Alaska’s second most visited National Park is Kenai Fjords in the southern part of the state. Head down to Seward, just 2.5 hours South of Anchorage, for a tour with Major Marine Tours to explore the National Park from the ocean. Your whole trip will be narrated so that you can learn about the history, wildlife, and geology of the area. You’ll have the chance to spot wildlife like whales, puffins, eagles, sea lions, and more as you coast out of Resurrection Bay.
Visit an active tidal glacier for an incredible sight of a blue glacier flowing out into the ocean. You’ll see icebergs floating around in the sea, and have the chance to watch a glacier calving event. Get your cameras ready to capture that moment where whales bubble feed together, humpbacks breach for a moment of surprise and awe, or the moment when ice thunders off the glacier and crashes into the bay. You never know what you may see on your tour in Seward, so find your spot out on the deck and enjoy the excitement!
Seward is a beautiful port town with incredible mountain views. After your boat tour grab some fresh seafood in town, go for a walk along the beach, or stay a few nights to head out on another ocean excursion!
3. Go Bear Viewing for the Day
Seeing bears fishing as they bulk up for hibernation is a huge highlight of visiting Alaska in the summer. While the location you can see bears will change depending on the time of year you visit, there are lots of options for incredible bear viewing. In July during the peak salmon run you can see bears fishing in rivers and creeks. The infamous Brooks Falls in Katmai are swarming with bears, fish, and guests hoping to get a chance to see a bear catch salmon as they climb up the falls.
Fly from Anchorage to Katmai, Lake Clark National Park, Redoubt Bay, or Chinitna Bay with Rust’s Flying Services to spot brown bears in the wild. You’ll embark on a full day adventure in a plane with floats or wheels to fly out to where the bears are plentiful. Enjoy the scenic flight, time in the wilderness, and bring your long lens to get some great bear photos!
Want more adventure recommendations for your trip to Alaska? Check out our top 10 adventures from Anchorage!
Add a Trail Ride With Us to Your Itinerary
Just 45 minutes North of Anchorage, you can meet us at the trailhead to trade asphalt for creek crossings, iconic views, and a valley most visitors only see from the highway! Learn to ride a UTV, gear up, and hit the trail! Our guides will show you around the prettiest valley in all of Alaska.
Choose from a quick 90 minute tour (perfect for on your way to or from Denali or Talkeetna), a Half-Day Tour, or a Full-Day Tour where you get to ride right up to a glacier lake full of icebergs. Get glacier and mountain views no matter which tour you choose, and get ready to kick up some dust and splash through creeks!
You’ll have the chance to see wildlife like Moose or Dall Sheep along the trail. Our Full Day Tour even includes a hot lunch while you explore around the glacier lake!
If ‘real Alaska’ to you means mud on your boots and glacier views without the crowds, then this is the off-road day you will want to build the rest of your trip around. Squeeze it into your itinerary or come explore Palmer for the whole day so you can ride out to the glacier!
See You This Summer!
Your trip up to Alaska is going to be full of experiences – memories of whales, glaciers, and flightseeing will blur together in the best possible way. Get ready to see some of the most epic landscapes you’ll ever visit and have some amazing wildlife encounters. Fill your camera roll with videos and photos from the 49th State so you can return home and tell tales of your visit to Alaska!
