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The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska

The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska

April 04, 2018
Luxury Travel

The seven amazing ports and National Parks in Alaska that make up most of the itineraries in an Alaska Cruise Tours, and they are:


Juneau is the The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska capital city of Alaska. It is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the Alaskan panhandle and is the second largest city in the United States. Downtown Juneau is at the base of Mount Juneau and across the channel from Douglas Island.The city is unusual because there are no roads connecting Juneau to the rest of Alaska. Ferry service is available for cars. Juneau is named after gold prospector Joe Juneau. Downtown Juneau sits at sea level, with tides averaging 16 feet, below steep mountains about 3500 to 4000 feet. Atop these mountains is the Juneau Icefield, a large ice mass with about 30 flowing glaciers. You can see the Mendenhall Glacier and the Lemon Creek Glacier from local roads.

The Gastineau Channel was a favorite fishing ground for local Tlingit Indians, who had inhabited the area for thousands of years. The native cultures are rich with artistic traditions including carving, weaving, singing and dancing.

The climate is mild with moist and long winters, Spring, summer and fall are cool to mild


The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska

Denali is a national park and preserve located in Interior Alaska, centered on Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in North America. The park encompasses more than 6 million acres with mixed forest landscape. The preserve is also home to tundra, glaciers, rock and snow. The park offers wildlife viewing, mountain climbing and backpacking. Winter-time activities include dog-sledding, cross-country skiing and snow-machining. Denali is home to Alaskan birds and mammals including grizzly and black bears. Herds of caribou roam the park, while Dall sheep are seen on the mountainsides. Moose feed on the plants. Foxes, martens lynx, wolverines also inhabit the park.You'll find an abundance of fish in the waters, as well as the wood frog.The park has a 91-mile road running from George Parks Highway to the mining camp of Kantishna. Only a small portion of this road is paved. The first 15 miles of the road are available to private vehicles. Concessionary buses take visitors  to the interior of the park. Denali has long winters and summers are cool and damp. The weather is so unpredictable that there has been snow in August.


Fairbanks is theThe Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska largest city in the "Interior" region of Alaska and third largest in the state. Captain E.T. Barnette founded Fairbanks in August 1901 while headed to Tanacross where he intended to set up a trading post. Teams of gold prospectors built drift mines, dredges and lode mines in addition to panning and sluicing.Fairbanks was also a producer of agricultural goods, as well as farming activities. Fairbanks is located in the central Tanana Valley, straddling the Chena River and the Tanana River.North of the city is a chain of hills reaching the White Mountains and the Yukon River.Fairbanks climate gives it very long winters and short, warm summers. Winter lasts from late September until late April, but snow is limited from February to May.Fairbanks is a hub for cross-country skiing in Alaska.


The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska

The city of Kenai is named after the local word ken or kena, which means flat, meadow, open area with few trees.  Summers are cool and winters are snowy, long but not particularly cold. Although many fishing boats are based in Kenai, it does not have a formal port and harbor. The nearest deep water port is in Nikiski. A world record "king salmon was caught in the Kenai River, making the city a popular fishing tourist location.


Seward isThe Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska the ninth most lucrative fishing port in the United States. Another major industry in Seward is tourism. It has a maintained dock for cruise ships and controls a shipping terminal for coal. Seward is unusual among most small Alaskan communities, as it has road access in the Seward highway.Cruise ship passengers get off the boats and take the train farther north to Denali or other Alaskan attractions from Seward.

It is also a very bike friendly community. Bkies are available for rent and there are guided bike tours of the area. Points of interest in Seward are Mount Marathon and its famous Mount Marathon Race, the Kenai Fjords National Park, the Alaska SeaLife Center, the Seward Silver Salmon derby, the Polar Bear Jump-Off, music and art festivals and the Balto Film festival.


The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska

Whitehorse is the capital and largest city of the Yukon. The city was named after the Whitehorse Rapids for their resemblance to the mane of a white horse, near Miles Canyon. Because of the location of the city in the Whitehorse Valley, the climate is milder than other comparable northern communities. Winter days are short and summer days have 20 hours of sunlight. You will find the S>S> Klondike riverboat, Rotary Peace Park and the waterfront interesting landmarks.Climb the "Two Mile Hill" to see an overview of the old residential neighborhoods where homes are the original army barracks and military officers residences. The narrow gauge railway links Skagway to Whitehorse. There is bus service and a waterfront tram which provides transportation along the Yukon River. Outdoor attractions include, Whitehouse Fish Ladder and Dam (longest wooden fish ladder in the world, Yukon Gardens, Log Skyscrapers, Yukon Wildlife Preserve and Takhini Hot Springs. The Frantic Follies Vaudeville Revue is a major tourist attraction. The annual 1000 mile Yukon Quest sled dog race between Whitehorse and Fairbanks is considered one of the toughest in the world.


The Seven Amazing Ports and National Parks in Alaska Whittier is on the northeast shore of Kenai Peninsula.The Whittier Glacier near Whittier was named for American poet John Greenleaf Whittier. Whittier is a popular port of call for cruise ships, as it has connections to anchorage and interior of Alaska by both highway and rail. It is the embarkation/debarkation point of the Denali express, the non stop rail service to and from Denali National Park. Whittier is popular with tourists, sport fishermen and hunters. The Whittier tunnel links Seward Highway south of Anchorage with Whittier and is the only land access to the town.

Alaska is one of the few well known adventures in the United States... There are many escorted Alaska tours and Alaska cruise tours to choose from beginning with land packages and land & sea packages.