Alaskan Adventure of a Lifetime

July 29 – August 6, 2011

Discover the unparalelled beauty of the Alaskan wilderness.  Alaska is the last unspoiled frontier in the United States.  It’s incredible landscapes, towns and people will allow you to amass a lifetime of memories on this incredible tour.  Learn about Alaska’s unique culture, history and wildlife as you enjoy incredible views of mighty glaciers, snowcapped peaks, whales, seals, bears, wolves, moose and so much more.  Sit back, relax and enjoy Alaska’s incredible scenery unfold before your eyes from your seat on our luxury motorcoach, the deck of an authentic paddleboat or from the historic Alaska Railroad.

Highlights include:  Chena and Tanana River Paddle Boat Tour, Gold Mining History and Hands-On Panning, Denali National Park and Visitor’s Center, Tour of the Alaska Museum of the North, Kenai Fjords National Park Catamaran Cruise and an Alaska Railroad Excursion.

$3,799 Double Occupancy • $4,498 Single Occupancy • $3,550 Triple Occupancy • Quad Occupancy $3,400

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 1 Leave XNA, destination: Fairbanks! After arriving in Alaska’s largest city, we’ll be transferred to our hotel where we’ll enjoy a fabulous welcome dinner. We will proceed to our welcome dinner this evening, provided our flight arrives before 8 p.m., otherwise we will enjoy the festivities tomorrow evening.

Lodging: Pike’s Waterfront Lodge

Meals: Dinner

 

Day 2 This bright and beautiful morning we tour Alaska’s interior region along portions of the Chena and Tenana Rivers aboard the paddle-driven Riverboat Discovery. These westward flowing rivers feed into the incredible 2300 mile-long Yukon River. Enjoy watching a genuine Bush floatplane takeoff, tour the kennel of the late Susan Butcher, four-time Iditarod winner, and gain decades worth of insight on a personalized, native Alaskan-led tour of the Chena Indian Village. Your Alaska experience continues as we travel to the El Dorado Gold Mine, learn about Alaska’s rich gold history and then have a go at actual gold-panning!

Lodging: Pike’s Waterfront Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

 

Day 3 Our immersion in Alaskan history and heritage continues as we visit the University of Alaska Museum of the North. The museum holds a collection of over 1.4 million artifacts and specimens showcasing the history of thousands of years of cultural traditions in the North. Departing Fairbanks, our next destination is the awe-inspiring Denali National Park Preserve and its centerpiece, Mt. McKinley. The highest mountain peak in North America, Mt. McKinley stretches an astounding 20,320 feet into the breathtaking blue skies. We’ll experience a night of fun, festivities and food at the Cabin Nite Dinner theatre, performed in an authentic, log-paneled roadhouse. After a hearty dinner and lots of laughter we’ll retire for the evening.

Lodging: Grizzly Bear Resort

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

 

Day 4 Today we enjoy a full day of untamed Alaskan Wilderness. We will board a shuttle bus and travel to Denali / Mt. McKinley National Park and the Eielson Visitor’s Center. The newly constructed sustainable building and all new interpretive exhibits are impressive and informative. Along the way, be sure to keep a sharp lookout for the native wildlife such as bears, caribou, wolves, deer, moose and foxes. Knowledgable Alaskan Park Rangers will be available to answer your questions.

Lodging: Grizzly Bear Resort

Meals:  Breakfast, Lunch

 

Day 5 After concluding our tour of the Denali/Mt McKinley area, we depart for Seward, stopping to tour the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. The AWCC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving Alaska’s wildlife through public education. AWCC takes in injured and orphaned animals year-round and provides spacious enclosures and quality animal care. Animals that cannot be released into the wild are given a permanent home at the center. We arrive in Seward in the early evening, where you may enjoy a meal, explore or simply relax.

Lodging: Holiday Inn Express

Meals: Breakfast

 

Day 6 This fabulous day will center around our cruise through the extraordinary Kenai Fjords National Park and Chiswell Islands National Refuge. We will board a high-speed catamaran and enjoy 6 hours of fabulous water, wildlife and whale watching opportunities. Tidewater glaciers, puffin, porpoises and sea otters abound and, if nature cooperates, we may witness the awe inspiring Humpback or impressive Orca whales.

Lodging: Holiday Inn Express

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

 

Day 7 Our morning will be spent visiting the Alaska Sea Life Center, Alaska’s only public aquarium and ocean wildlife rescue facility. This “Window on the Sea” will provide close encounters with puffins, octopus, sea lions and other sealife. Next, we will enjoy a once in a lifetime experience of walking the incredible Exit Glacier. Feel the dense blue ice while listening to it crackle! Early evening finds us boarding the incredible Alaska Railway. Our journey from Seward aboard the Coastal Classic Train takes through primeval forests of Sitka Spruce, over Snowy River and provides views of massive glaciers and amazing wildlife. Arriving in Anchorage, we will end our day.

Lodging: Holiday Inn Express or Clarion Suites

Meals: Breakfast, Farewell Dinner

 

Day 8 Today we visit Native Alaska Heritage Center where we learn about the rich legacy of Alaska’s first people and its eleven cultural groups, drawing upon the lifeways of long ago, the wisdom of elders, and enduring traditions. Next, we visit the Anchorage Museum of History and Art in the heart of Anchorage. Concluding our tour, we depart Anchorage for Missouri.

Meals: Breakfast

 

Your package includes deluxe transportation and accommodations, all listed tour fees and 13 meals.